India - Pakistan
India and Pakistan got independence at the same time. India shares a 3323 Km long boundary with Pakistan. The border is guarded by brave jawans from the Border Security Force. There is a lot of confusion regarding the international boundary with Pakistan.
Radcliffe Line - Radcliffe Line was created by Sir Cyril Radcliffe who was the head of the Boundary Commission. He divided India and Pakistan and the international boundary was named as Radcliffe Line. The kingdom of Kashmir was not included in the boundary commission as Kashmir had decided to be independent till then.
Ceasefire Line - By the time Maharaja Hari Singh signed the instrument of accession with the Government Of India, many Tribal Warlods from Pakistan had invaded Kashmir. As a result, the Indian Army was sent to Kashmir and they tried to push the militants back. However, with the UN’s intervention, both sides stayed at their respective places and a ceasefire was declared. Since then, the border line has been called as Ceasefire Line.
Line Of Control - After Pakistan’s brutal defeat in the 1971 war, the ceasefire line was renamed as Line Of Control.
Hence, as of now, the International Boundary line between India and Pakistan is called the Line of Control.
Disputed Territories
● Gilgit Baltistan
● Azad Kashmir
● LOC
● Trans Karakoram Tract
● Siachin glacier
India - Afghanistan
India shares a mere 106 km long border with Afghanistan. Although many people in India think that India does not share any border with Afghanistan. This line is at the edge of the Wakhan Corridor and is of utmost strategic importance for India. India can get uninterrupted access to Central Asia by bypassing Pakistan. India and Afghanistan have had no border disputes till now.
India - China
China is India’s biggest threat in neighborhood and as China has with every other country, it has several boundary disputes with India as well. India and China share a 3488 km long border which is guarded by the jawans from Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Special Frontier Force (SFF). The SFF is a special force consisting of Tibetan Refugees and it was formed in 1961 after the Sino - Indian war.
India and China have border disputes in the northern command and the eastern command. In the northern command, the Ardagh Johnson Line is the international boundary that has been violated by China. In the eastern command, the McMohan Line decides the boundary between the two nuclear powers and China does not accept this line as well. The McMohan line was decided in 1914 at the Shimla Convention.
Disputed Territories
● Aksai Chin
● Ladakh
● Arunachal Pradesh
India - Nepal
India and Nepal have had great historical ties and Nepal has always been a close ally of India until now when its interests are being tilted towards China. India and Nepal share a border of 1751 Km. The Indo-Nepal border is guarded by the brave jawans of Sahastra Seema Bal (SSB). In 1816, the Sugauli treaty was signed and the monarch of Nepal and the British government in India discussed the international boundary between the two countries.
The border between India and Nepal is very exciting as it is an Open or Porous border. It means that there are no Visa restrictions and people can travel freely from one country to another without and passport or Visa. There have not been any territorial disputes between the two countries until recently.
Disputed Territories
● Kalapani
● Susta
India - Bhutan
India and Bhutan share a very peaceful and significant relationship. India is Bhutan’s protectorate and shares a 699 km border with the country. The border between India and Bhutan is guarded by the Jawans of Sahastra Seema Bal (SSB).
The international border was established in the Treaty of Sinchula and the Treaty of Punakha and has been the same since then. However, the final Border Demarcation Treaty was signed between the two countries in 2006 and that has been the international border since then. India has no territorial disputes with Bhutan.
India - Myanmar
India and Myanmar have a 1643 km long mountainous border. It is heavily guarded by the competent jawans of the Assam Rifles. India and Myanmar have a Free Movement Regime (FMR). This means that the local tribes from India and Myanmar can cross the border and travel within a 16 km radius on both sides of the border. This was done to promote cross-border family ties. India and Myanmar have no border disputes.
India - Bangladesh
India and Bangladesh share a 4096.7 km long border which makes it the longest territorial border India shares with any of its neighbors. This massive border is guarded by the jawans of the Border Security Force (BSF). The Radcliffe Line is the official border between the two countries.
Although there weren’t any border disputes between the two South Asian countries, there were many enclaves between the two. Enclaves are pieces of land which are covered by another country’s land from all 4 sides. According to a joint census conducted in 2010, around 37334 Bangladeshi citizens live in Indian enclaves, and 14215 Indian citizens live in Bangladeshi enclaves.
In 1974, a land boundary agreement was signed between the two countries, and a few enclaves were exchanged. A revised version of the agreement was adopted by the Indian Parliament as the 100th Amendment Act. In 2015. Residents from both sides were given the right to choose any country they wanted to be in.
Conclusion
India has a vast land boundary with 7 nations and a maritime boundary with 2 nations. Out of these, only China and Pakistan seem to pose a viable threat to our nation’s territorial integrity and security. However, the Indian government and Security Forces know how to deal with such skirmishes very well and can tackle any threat with utmost perfection. The government of India is trying its best to reclaim all the lost territories diplomatically.
Jai Hind, Jai Bharat!