India on Thursday said it was closely monitoring the construction of a bridge on Pangong Tso by China, underlining that the activity was happening in areas that have been under “illegal occupation by China for around 60 years”.

Responding to questions on reports of the construction — backed by satellite images — external affairs ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said: “As you are well aware, India has never accepted such illegal occupation. Separately, the government has been taking all necessary steps to ensure that our security interests are fully protected.

“As part of these efforts, the government has also, in the last seven years, increased significantly the budget for development of border infrastructure and completed more roads and bridges than ever before. These have provided much needed connectivity to the local population as well as logistical support to the armed forces. The government remains committed to this objective.”

India’s construction activity on this side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) over the past decade and a half has been billed as one of the reasons for China’s aggression vis-à-vis India since the spring of 2020. In the early years of the first UPA government, India decided to go for a massive programme of road building along its entire border with China.

On Chinese media reports of the People’s Liberation Army unfurling the Chinese flag in Galwan, Bagchi said they were not factually correct. “Various Indian media outlets have released photographs contradicting the claims.”

The ministry also sharpened its response to China’s civil aviation ministry renaming 20 places in Arunachal Pradesh, calling these antics.

“Calling Tuting as ‘DouDeng’ or River Siyom as ‘XiYueMu’ or even Kibithu as ‘Daba’ does not alter the fact that Arunachal Pradesh has always been and will always remain an inalienable part of India. We hope that instead of engaging in such antics, China will work constructively with us to resolve the outstanding friction points in areas along the western sector of the LAC.”

The ministry criticised China for shooting off letters to parliamentarians from various parties who attended a meeting organised by the Tibetan government in exile last month.

“The Chinese side should note that India is a vibrant democracy and honourable MPs, as representatives of the people, undertake activities as per their views and beliefs. We expect the Chinese side to refrain from hyping normal activities by honourable MPs and complicate further the situation in our bilateral relations,” Bagchi said.