By Zainab Akhter
In a move that may rattle India’s neighbours, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has decided to convert the Kargil airstrip into a full-fledged air force base by 2016. The strip lies close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. The IAF is planning to operate medium, heavy-lift and combat aircrafts from Kargil in the near future. The Kargil War of 1999 saw significant shelling and damage to the airstrip, and converting the airport into a full-fledged air base seems to be a logical response to those loses.
The upgrading of the advanced landing ground (ALG) in Nyoma is also in the pipelines. It is situated in the Leh district of the Ladakh region. The compact airstrip at Nyoma is only 23kms from Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. The expansion plan is part of a series of airfield modernisation projects taken up since the government revised its policy and began upgrading infrastructure along border. The plan of having an air base in Kargil, which shares a border with Pakistan and China can be interpreted as an effort to address the threat posed by both countries simultaneously, and hence of great strategic significance to India.
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