NEW DELHI: The Indian Army is in the process of raising a division-level formation to be permanently positioned in the sensitive Eastern Ladakh area, sources told this newspaper. This will be in addition to the 3 Division, which is responsible for the entire Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Terming it a major re-ORBAT move, sources said the new formation will be called 72 Division. ORBAT means ‘order of battle’ and Re-ORBAT is reorganising and redeployment of existing troops.
In the Army, a division comprises 10,000-15,000 combat troops and 8,000 support elements, commanded by a Major General, and made up of 3 to 4 brigades. A brigade has a troop size of 3,500-4,000 with a Brigadier as commander.
“The headquarters are being raised; one Brigade headquarter is already deployed in Eastern Ladakh and has begun functioning,” sources said. The larger elements of the formation are being trained in the western parts of the country “to synchronise the personnel, equipment and organisation as per specific tasking,” sources added.
The 72 Division will be permanently placed under the Leh-based 14 Fire & Fury Corps, which was raised in September 1999 after the Kargil war. The Corps handles some of the most sensitive frontiers and battlefields in the world.
The area that will be under the control of the 72 Division is currently being taken care of by the counter insurgency wing called ‘Uniform Force’. Its elements, in lesser numbers, were moved as an ad-hoc arrangement to fill the gap. The Uniform Force will soon move back to its old location in Reasi, Jammu Division.
The Army’s decision to raise a permanent division in East Ladakh is important as the situation along the 832-km LAC remains sensitive, which calls for constant vigil and strategic preparedness.
A standoff took place between Chinese and Indian troops in May 2020 at Finger-4 near Pangong Lake, followed by a deadly clash in June in Galwan valley. After several rounds of talks, Indian and Chinese troops completed their disengagement in the Depsang and Demchok areas of Ladakh in October last year, following which patrolling resumed. However, the troops from both sides remain in the vicinity of the LAC.