Satellite imagery indicates ongoing construction of a road in a Kashmir region under Chinese control, specifically the Shaksgam Valley, a part of Azad Kashmir ceded to China in 1963.
The road extends from China’s Xinjiang province, emerging from an extension of Highway G219, and disappears into the mountains about 50 kilometers north of India’s northernmost point, Indira Col, in the Siachen Glacier, known as the world’s highest battlefield. India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh has made two visits to this area since March.
Analysis by India Today’s Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) team, utilizing data from the European Space Agency, reveals that construction of the road began between June and August of the previous year.
Former commander of the Indian Army’s Fire and Fury Corps, responsible for overseeing Kargil, Siachen Glacier, and Eastern Ladakh, Lt Gen Rakesh Sharma, asserts the road’s construction is unlawful, urging India to voice diplomatic objections to China’s actions.
Meanwhile, Mehbooba Mufti accuses the Indian government of radicalizing Kashmiris, and the Indian Supreme Court is set to consider direct rule in occupied Kashmir. In another incident, Hindu pilgrims reportedly attacked and injured 40 Kashmiri porters.
The disputed region, the Trans-Karakoram Tract, covering approximately 5,300 square kilometers, was captured by Pakistan during the 1947 war and later transferred to China under a bilateral boundary agreement in 1963. However, India does not recognize this agreement.
India’s concerns are heightened by reports of increased military cooperation in the area. Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan province expressed plans in 2021 to construct a road connecting Muzaffarabad to Mustagh Pass on the Pakistan border with the Shaksgam Valley. This road could potentially link to Yarkand in Xinjiang, suggesting a route through the Shaksgam Valley connecting with China’s national highway G219.
