Delhi Diary: Siachen Glacier World's Highest Battle Ground

By M.Santhiran M.Santhiran, Bernama's correspondent in New Delhi shares his take on India. NEW DELHI, Feb 15 (Bernama) -- Animosity runs deep between India and Pakistan with both countries going into three wars in the past and witnessing countless skirmishes even till today along their disputed borders. However, the recent avalanche that buried a remote military post at the Karakoram range in the Himalayas in Kashmir gave me a new perspective on how 'high' both sides have taken their hostilities. In fact the animosity has created the world's highest battle ground, the Siachen Glacier region at an altitude of 5,800 metres (19,500 feet), along the heavily militarised line of control between Pakistan and India. It is where the 10 soldiers were buried alive after their base camp was buried in an avalanche on Feb 3. One of the soldiers, Lance Hanamanthappa Koppad was pulled out alive six days later, but succumbed to multiple organ failures after two days. Now there are calls that it is time for both India and Pakistan to demilitarise the entire Siachen region. In 2012, an avalanche on the Pakistan-controlled part of the same glacier killed 140 people including 129 soldiers. ITS COSTLY AND FORGOTTEN CONFLICT According to a senior Indian army officer recently the military deployment at that altitude costs nearly 1,000 crore rupees (nearly US$162.27 million) annually. The officer said nearly 2,000 soldiers from both sides have died on the Siachen Glacier since Pakistani security forces attempted to occupy several strategic locations of the glacier in 1984. The Hindu, a leading Indian daily, in its editorial stated that the lack of political will to end the conflict had resulted in the lost of lives at the high altitude outpost both due to both hostilities and the vagaries of nature. INDIA IMPOSE CONDITIONS ON DEMILITARISATION While the demilitarisation of Siachen is definitely doable, it remains a pipe dream for both sides. Immediately after the avalanche, Islamabad offered its assistance in the search and rescue operations but India declined to accept the goodwill gesture. Foreign diplomats and Indian officials here said that recent Pathankot air base attack and failure of Pakistani government to act against on terrorist groups based on its soil resulted India to decline the offer. Pakistani High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit was quoted saying that the tragedy reinforced the urgency for both countries to withdraw their troops from the Siachen region. "These tragedies only reinforce the need to resolve the issue urgently and through peaceful means, through dialogue," Basit said. However, a top Indian Army commander Left-Gen D.S. Hooda responded by saying Pakistan had to accept "some basic" conditions before such withdrawal could be made. THE INDIAN MEDIA PREOCCUPATION WITH INDIA-PAK CONFLICT During the regular weekly media briefing or press conferences held by officials of External Affairs Ministry (MEA), it will be incomplete without the local media raising issues related to India and Pakistan. It is common for news channels here to invite officials and personalities from both countries on live talk shows to delve on India-Pakistan issues. These live shows often end up as shouting matches. Two days ago, a news anchor of Indian Today news channel had a heated exchange with Pakistan's former president Gen Pervez Musharraf over deadlock on talks between both countries following the Pathankot air base attack on Jan 2 that killed seven Indian soldiers. Muzaraff, visibly uncomfortable throughout the video link interview, was rushed to the hospital immediately after the heated argument with the journalist. I'm sure I will be seeing more of the India-Pakistan exchanges during my tour of duty in India, as I enter into my second year of stay in India. --BERNAMA