NEW DELHI: The central government had rejected the new names given by China to at least 11 locations in Arunachal Pradesh.
“We reject this outright,” said Arindam Bagchi, official spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs (MEA) on Tuesday (April 04).
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The MEA spokesperson said: “This is not the first time that China has made such an attempt.”
“Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
He added: “Attempts to assign invented names will not alter this reality.”
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It may be mentioned here that on Sunday (April 02), China released a third batch of standardised geographical names for 11 localities in Arunachal Pradesh in its latest attempt to reaffirm its claim over the Northeast state.
The names were released by China’s ministry of civil affairs, complying with state council laws on geographical names.
China refers to Arunachal Pradesh as “Zangnan, the southern section of Tibet.”
The ministry listed the official names of two land areas, two residential areas, five mountain peaks, and two rivers, along with precise coordinates and their respective administrative districts.
Also read: China renames 11 places in Arunachal Pradesh, releases third set of names
The first batch of standardised names for six locations was released by China in 2017, followed by the second batch of 15 locations in 2021.
India and China have had several border disputes over the years, and the naming of places in Arunachal Pradesh is likely to add to the already strained relationship between the two nations.