India completes construction of 60m bridge over Galwan river that China had objected to

Amid the ongoing border tussle with China, the Indian Army has completed the construction of the bridge that China has objected to. The 60m four-span bridge which is near the Patroling Point 14, the place where 20 Indian Army personnel were martyred fighting the Chinese on Monday, was completed on Thursday

Special focus was laid on the road

Earlier, ANI had reported that the Army is looking to complete the work on the 255 Km-long strategic Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie (DSDBO) road including eight bridges and its blacktopping at some of the stretches by the end of this year. The use of the strategic road by the Indian security forces from Leh has helped in reducing the travel time between Leh and DBO to six hours. Earlier, the travel time between the two locations was significantly higher.

"We are planning that the work on the entire stretch should be complete by the end of this year which includes eight bridges of different sizes and blacktopping of the road at some of the stretches," ANI quoted government sources on June 14. The road has been in the making for over two decades now and a special focus was laid on it after the Narendra Modi government came to power in 2014.

The bridge connecting the Patrolling Point 14 in Galwan area with the territory across the Shyok river is also linked to the strategic road.

PM Modi to chair an all-party meeting on Friday

Meanwhile, At least 20 political parties are likely to attend the all-party meeting, called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the situation at the border areas with China that is scheduled to be held on Friday at 5 pm.

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Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP president Jagat Prakash Nadda will also be present in the virtual party meeting. According to ANI sources, former BJP chief Rajnath Singh had on Thursday personally invited all leaders on behalf of the Prime Minister.

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This is the first time since the eruption of border tensions in April that the PM has called for an all-party meeting to discuss the conflict. So far, his virtual meetings with opposition leaders have been on the coronavirus pandemic.

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At least 20 Indian Army personnel, including a Colonel rank officer, had lost their lives in the violent face-off in the Galwan valley area of Ladakh on June 15. The violent face-off happened on late evening and the night of June 15 in Ladakh's Galwan Valley as a result of an attempt by the Chinese troops to "unilaterally change" the status quo during de-escalation in Eastern Ladakh and the situation could have been avoided if the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side, India said on June 16.

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(With agency inputs)