'Sacrifices of our brave soldiers will not go in vain': IAF chief warns China, says forces prepared for any contingency

The Indian Air Force Chief, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria said on Saturday that India is well prepared and suitably deployed to respond to any contingency. His comments come amidst the ongoing India-China border dispute along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The IAF chief made the comment at a Combined Graduation Parade (CGP) at Air Force Academy (AFA) Dundigal in Hyderabad.

He also paid his tributes to the 20 army jawans who lost their lives in the clashes with the Chinese troops in the Galwan valley area in Eastern Ladakh. 

"It should be very clear that we are well prepared and suitably deployed to respond to any contingency. I assure the nation that we are determined to deliver and will never let the sacrifice of our braves of Galwan go in vain," Bhadauria said.

"The security scenario in our region mandates that our armed forces remain prepared and vigilant at all times. The development at LAC Ladakh is a small snapshot of what we are required to handle at short notice. In spite of unacceptable Chinese actions after agreements reached during military talks and resultant loss of life all efforts are endeavoured to ensure that the current situation at the LAC is resolved peacefully," he added.

"We are aware of the situation, be it on LAC or beyond, be it their air deployments, their posture & kind of deployments. We've full analysis & we've taken necessary action that we need to take to handle any contingency that may come up," Bhadauria asserted.

On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an all-party meeting with leaders of major political parties regarding the India-China border conflict on Friday who put across their views on the issue of border tension with China and the death of 20 Indian Army soldiers.

"Neither have they intruded into our border, nor has any post been taken over by them (China). 20 of our jawans were martyred, but those who dared Bharat Mata, they were taught a lesson," PM Modi said in his address to the nation yesterday.

However, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation,  the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement on the face-off incident at the Galwan Valley calling it to be a "step-by-step account of the incident".

The statement, attributed to the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian, claimed that the disputed area is located towards the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and accused the Indian troops of 'unilaterally' building roads, bridges, and other facilities at the spot.