China ‘standardises’ names of places in Arunachal Pradesh 

Days after protesting over the Dalai Lama’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh, China for the first time announced "standardised" official names for six places in Arunachal Pradesh.

"China's Ministry of Civil Affairs announced on April 14 that it had standardised in Chinese characters, Tibetan and Roman alphabet the names of six places in 'South Tibet', which India calls 'Arunachal Pradesh', in accordance with the regulations of the central government," the Chinese state-run Global Times reported on Wednesday.

The official names of the six places using the Roman alphabet are Wo'gyainling, Mila Ri, Qoid ngarbo Ri, Mainquka, B mo La and Namkapub Ri.

The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488 km long Line of Actual Control (LAC). While China claims Arunachal Pradesh as South Tibet, India asserts that the dispute covers Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during the 1962 war. The two sides have so far held 19 rounds of talks with Special Representatives to resolve the boundary dispute.

China's move comes just days after the Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, which was his seventh visit since he fled from Tibet through Tawang and sought refuge in India.

During the 81-year-old Tibetan spiritual leader's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, China had warned India that it will take "necessary measures" to defend its territorial sovereignty and interests.

Commenting on the standardisation of the names of six places, Chinese experts said, it was a move to "reaffirm the country's territorial sovereignty to the disputed region", according to the daily.

"The standardisation came amid China's growing understanding and recognition of the geography in South Tibet.

“Naming the places is a step to reaffirm China's territorial sovereignty to South Tibet," Xiong Kunxin, a professor of ethnic studies at Beijing's Minzu University of China, was quoted as saying.

"These names have existed since ancient times, but had never been standardised before. Therefore, announcing the names is like a remediation," Guo Kefan, a research fellow at the Tibet Academy of Social Sciences, said.

Standardising the names from the angles of culture and geography could serve as a reference or leverage when China and India negotiate border issues in future, Guo said.

Chinese media reports claimed that India "abruptly announced that it was officially designating the region as 'Arunachal Pradesh' but the Chinese government has neither recognised India's occupation of the region, nor the legitimacy of the province".

During the Dalai Lama Arunachal Pradesh visit, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, who accompanied the Tibetan spiritual leader, had asserted that Arunachal Pradesh is "an inseparable part of India".