World-class gear for 30,000 addl troops at LAC this winter

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Rs1 lakh per soldier

Clothing and gear to tackle extreme cold will cost over Rs1 lakh per soldier

Extra troops were deployed in May to ward off any China misadventure

Normally, patrolling was curtailed in winter as temp dipped up to minus 30

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 25

With additional troops to be positioned along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh during harsh winter, the Army is procuring world-class snow boots, gloves, layered jackets, trousers and sleeping bags.

New sleeping habitat like arctic tents and special high-nutrient diet are to be provided.

It is the first time that so many troops will be stationed during winter in eastern Ladakh along the 826-km-long LAC. Under normal circumstances, troop levels are no more than two brigades (around 10,000). Heated habitat with bunker-type beds already exists to house these many troops.

This year, the challenge will be the additional 30,000 troops who along with equipment have been stationed since May this year to ward off any misadventure by China.

Clothing and boots will be in multiple pairs as they tend to get wet in the snow. Just the clothing and gear to tackle the cold–night time temperatures are expected to be minus 30 degrees in peak winter–will cost more than Rs 1 lakh for each soldier, sources said.

Normally, patrolling is curtailed in winter. But this time, it is expected to be different as the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is stationed just across the LAC.

The winter will set in the first week of September when night temperatures dip below freezing point. The entire area is above 14,000 feet and some of the mountain passes to be guarded are in excess of 17,000 feet.

The other task is to feed the troops as low oxygen availability in tree-less eastern Ladakh coupled with extreme cold, low humidity and intense solar radiation throws up a challenge. The calorie intake has been calculated as the per Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences (DIPAS) study. The energy requirements in high altitude (over 12,000 feet) vary between 4,270 and 4,550 calories per day per person.