Guwahati, June 7: The helicopter lifts off from Borjhar, headed north across the Brahmaputra. As the terrain turns green and undulating, onward to the eastern Himalayas, the pristine, picture-postcard West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh materialises below.
It is here that Thembang village, with its unique dzong and abundant flora and fauna, is located. The greatest strength of Thembang lies in the traditional knowledge systems of its Monpa inhabitants, indicative of their consciousness in maintaining the natural heritage of their area as their traditional glory. In fact, with the richness of heritage structures found in the village, locals consider the village of Thembang itself a monument.
Yesterday, Thembang added another attraction when the army inaugurated a war memorial here to commemorate the site where an infantry battalion fought valiantly against the Chinese forces in 1962.
General-officer-commanding-in-chief, Gajraj Corps, Lt Gen. Amarjeet Singh Bedi, inaugurated the memorial, 80km from the Sino-Indian border. Defence spokesperson Lt Col Sombit Ghosh said the memorial was constructed by the Scout Battalion of the army, to mark the valour and sacrifice displayed by the men of 5 Guards, an infantry brigade, in Thembang on November 16 and 17, 1962.
"The battle brought to the fore the resolute courage and indomitable fighting spirit shown by the bravehearts of 5 Guards pitted against a numerically superior Chinese forces. The valiant fight put up by the Guardsmen inflicted heavy casualties on the Chinese wherein they lost over 600 men. In fact, so great was the impact of those losses on the Chinese that some of them mutinied after the action which stalled their further advance," Col Ghosh said in a statement.
The Guards battalion had lost 90 soldiers, including two officers, in the battle, he said.
The inauguration of the memorial is part of the country's initiative to pay tribute to those who died during the 1962 war in which Chinese soldiers had entered Arunachal Pradesh and reached up to Tezpur in Assam.
India has re-opened the advance landing grounds of its air force in Arunachal Pradesh, which remained abandoned since the 1962 Chinese aggression. It has also taken up a railway project to connect Tawang, situated along the border, with railway to give its forces a communication boost. Tawang district is adjacent to West Kameng district and forms part of the tourist circuit.
The memorial will definitely boost the tourism potential of the state. The main attraction, Thembang Dzong, is located at the altitude of 2169 metres above sea level. Thembang is surrounded by the majestic beauty of lush green hills, steep gorges and snow-clad mountains. The Dirang cascades down the gorge running along the western side of Thembang.
Rare species like the red panda are found in these forests. The locals of Thembang respect this ecological richness and have incorporated its aspects in their socio-religious practices. The Monpas maintain the ecological equilibrium as part of their cultural life.
