Learning languages on the border
Himveers are not merely border patrollers up in the Himalayas. They are India’s soldier-communicators. Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel, called Himveers, patrol the Line of Actual Control between India and China. They are now being trained in Mandarin to communicate better with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers during patrols. Six thousand Himveers have completed the training to date. Eventually, the entire force, nearly 90,000 strong, will understand basic Mandarin. The government approved the plan to avoid tensions arising from a lack of proper communication between the border patrols. The border is anyway not fully demarcated, and trespassing is routine. If not handled sensitively, it can lead to misunderstandings. Hundreds of transgressions take place every year. Border stand-offs, first in Doklam and now in Ladakh, exacerbate the situation.
Such language training is imperative. Patrolling parties do have formal communication fora, like flag meetings, but unexpected events can test the maturity of the soldiers in the field. Miscommunication can spoil the atmosphere. Today, modern communication technologies are transforming the character of military activities, from war to border patrol. The transformation is impacting the shape of formal and non-formal violence even as it makes the job of tactical assessments in inaccessible border areas easier. However, it all sometimes boils down to what one soldier says to the other as both face each other, intent on defending their border at all costs. The entire system, technology, tactics, or the fate of countries can depend on how soldiers conduct themselves when they stand barely yards apart at an unmarked border.
A soldier cannot always expect to take an interpreter along. The soldier should know the ‘enemy’ language for elementary conversations. The India-Pakistan border is easier to negotiate because of a commonly understood language, but it is not so in the east.
The personnel deployed there must not only know Chinese, but also be trained in soft skills like on-the-spot negotiation and contact procedures, and be aware of the culture of the other side. The concept should be taken to the Northeastern states bordering other countries where the soldiers and paramilitary forces benefit from knowing a smattering of the local language. Language humanises.