LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO - 3447
ANSWERED ON - 08/08/2025
TERRITORIES OCCUPIED BY CHINA IN 1962
3447. SHRI RAO RAJENDRA SINGH
Will the Minister of External Affairs be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government of India has any data on the territories that were occupied by China during the Sino-Indian War of 1962, if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether any diplomatic efforts or overtures have been made with China, since 1962, to reclaim such territories that were lost during the war; and
(c) if so, the details thereof and the extent to which the aforementioned talks have progressed?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
(SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)
(a to c) At the end of the 1962 conflict, China was in illegal occupation of approximately 38,000 sq. kms. of Indian territory.
There have been several initiatives taken bilaterally with China over the years to address the outstanding boundary question.
Following the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Huang Hua to New Delhi in June 1981, India and China held eight rounds of formal border negotiations from December 1981 to November 1987, led at Secretary level.
During the official visit of PM Rajiv Gandhi to China from 19-23 December 1988, the two sides announced the creation of India-China Joint Working Group on the boundary question. The Joint Working Groups met for a total of 15 rounds between 1989 and 2005.
During Prime Minister Vajpayee’s official visit to China from 22-27 June 2003, the two sides announced the appointment of Special Representatives to explore from the political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship the framework of a boundary settlement. Based on the first five rounds of talks between the Special Representatives, both sides signed the "Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles for Settlement of India-China Boundary Question” on April 11, 2005. Thereafter, 10 more rounds of the SR Talks were held until 2012, at the end of which the two sides identified further elements of consensus in a "Common Understanding of the Discussions between the Special Representatives of India and China on the Framework of Settlement of the Boundary Question” in December 2012. Subsequently, 8 more rounds of the SR Talks have been held, the last one being in Beijing on 18 December 2024.
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