Nirmala Sitharaman to visit Nathu La along with Army chief

Amid reports of Chinese forces being present in high numbers in the region close to Doklam, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will visit the China border at Nathu La in Sikkim and interact with troops guarding the frontier.

Vice Chief of Army Sarath Chand will also be accompanying the Defence Minister. They will visit Tezpur in Assam during the two-day visit beginning Saturday. Sitharaman was earlier scheduled to visit Arunachal Pradesh, too, but it was cancelled later, a source said.

Her visit to Nathu La is particularly significant as it shares the border with Chumi Valley in Tibet adjoining Doklam, where the standoff took place.

Even though the standoff was resolved more than a month ago, the increasing presence of Chinese troops close to the point of standoff between Indian and Chinese troops, has alarmed India.

Air Force Chief BS Dhanoa confirmed the existence of Chinese troops in the region on Thursday.

There are also reports of road expansion activity in the nearby zones of Doklam where the standoff took place, but sources in the security establishment said it does not affect India's strategic interest as it is 10 km from the point of standoff. "There increased presence in the region does not affect us at this point of time. It's matter of few weeks," said a source.