ITBP to Set Up 10 All?Women Border Posts Along the India?China LAC

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), responsible for guarding India’s 3,488 km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, is significantly strengthening its presence along the frontier. As part of its ambitious “forwardisation” plan, initiated after the 2020 military clash in Ladakh, the force has moved 215 border posts forward, up from 180, enhancing India’s security along its northern and eastern flanks. The plan has been bolstered by the sanction of seven new battalions and a sector headquarters in 2023, adding approximately 9,400 personnel, and the ITBP aims to establish 41 more forward bases along the LAC in the near future to further improve security and coordination.

In a major step to enhance the role of women in frontline security, the ITBP is setting up 10 all-women border outposts (BOPs) along this challenging and icy terrain. Two of these posts are already being established in Ladakh’s Lukung and Thangi in Himachal Pradesh, with eight more planned, reflecting the force’s commitment to integrating women combatants into high-altitude operations. To prepare troops for these demanding conditions, ITBP training institutions have been reorganized, introducing five new skilling modules covering areas such as mountain warfare and tactical survival.

The force operates in extreme high-altitude environments, with border posts situated between 9,000 and over 14,000 feet, where personnel face inclement weather and low oxygen levels. Raised in 1962, the ITBP functions under the Union Home Ministry and currently has a manpower of more than one lakh, continuing its modernization efforts while strengthening forward deployment and promoting women’s roles in securing India’s borders.