NEW DELHI: Days after India rejected its attempts to rename some places in Arunachal Pradesh, China has again sought to make comments about the Indian border state saying it “opposes” the visit of Home Minister Amit Shah.
“China firmly opposes the Indian official’s visit to Zangnan as Zangnan is China’s territory and the visit violated China’s territorial sovereignty and is not conducive to peace and tranquillity in the border region,” China Daily, a state-affiliated daily, quoted Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin as stating at a news briefing on Monday.
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah on Monday launched the ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’ in Kibithoo, a border village in Arunachal Pradesh.
The Centre has approved the ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’ with central components of Rs 4800 crore including Rs.2500 crore exclusively for road connectivity for the financial years 2022-23 to 2025-26.
The programme will help in improving the quality of life of people living in identified border villages and encourage people to stay in their native locations thereby reversing the outmigration from these villages and adding to the security of the border.
A total of 2967 villages in 46 blocks of 19 districts abutting the northern border in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh and UT of Ladakh have been identified for comprehensive development under ‘Vibrant Villages Programme’
The Ministry of External Affairs had earlier this month rejected China’s attempts to rename 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh.
“We have seen such reports. This is not the first time China has made such an attempt. We reject this outright. Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India. Attempts to assign invented names will not alter this reality,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
The United States had also strongly opposed China’s attempts to advance its claim over the Indian territory of Arunachal Pradesh by renaming places. (ANI)