Chief Defense President (CDS) General Anil Chauhan said on Wednesday (24 September 2025) that the use of the Air Force during the 1962 Indo-China war would have reduced the Chinese invasion significantly. He said that this step could have been called ‘stress -enhancing’ then, but now it is not as it happened in ‘Operation Sindoor’.

Regarding the war with China 63 years ago, he said that advance policy should not have been implemented equally to Ladakh and NEFA (North-East Frontier Agency) or present Arunachal Pradesh. He said that this is because the history of the dispute between the two regions is different and the land is also completely different. Following similar policies was flawed. The CDS said that the security situation has changed in the last few years and the nature of war has also changed.

‘Thought to use the Air Force, but …’

General Chauhan made this comment in a recorded video message aired during the release of the revised autobiography of the late Lieutenant General SP Thorat in Pune. Lieutenant General Thorat was the ‘General Officer Commanding-in-Chief’ of the Eastern Command before the Indo-China War. The CDS said that Lieutenant General Thorat had thought of using the Indian Air Force, but the then government did not allow such a step.

‘India benefits a big benefit in the 1962 war’

On the use of the Air Force, the CDS said that during the 1962 war, it would have greatly benefited. The CDS said that the use of aerial power would have reduced the speed of Chinese invasion. He said, ‘This would have given a lot of time for the army to prepare. In those days, I think the use of Air Force was considered stress enhancing. I think this is not true now, and Operation Sindoor is an accurate example of this.

The war between India and China took place in 1962, which is known as the Indo-China war or the Sino-Indian War. This war ran from 20 October 1962 to 20 November 1962. This war happened due to border dispute between India and China, which is still a matter of discussion. The roots of this war are hidden in historical, geographical and political factors. Let us know what was the main reason for India’s war and who was harmed in this war?

The reason for the war between India and China

The main reason for the war between India China was a dispute over the sovereignty of the border areas of Aksai China and Arunachal Pradesh. Aksai Chin, which India considers part of Ladakh, considers China part of Shinjiang province. The confrontation started from here turned into war. Apart from this, the issue of Tibet was also important. China was angry with the Dalai Lama taking refuge in India in 1959. He felt that India was supporting activities against him in Tibet.

India gave a tough competition to China

The Chinese military started attacks together on 20 October 1962 in Ladakh and across the McMahon line. Due to the area of inaccessible snow -covered hills, India had deployed soldiers from all over, while China landed in the battlefield with complete preparation. The Chinese army rapidly infiltrated Indian regions. There were 10 to 20 thousand soldiers of India and a war broke out between 80 thousand soldiers of China. China landed with 8 times more soldiers in the battlefield, but Indian soldiers gave them a tough fight. However, in this war, China was successful in capturing many regions of India. The Chinese army captured Rajangla in Chushul in the western region and Tawang in the east. After this, the ceasefire announced on 20 November 1962.

How much was the loss?

1383 soldiers of India were martyred in this war, while 1,047 soldiers were injured. At the same time, about 722 soldiers from China were killed while 1697 soldiers were injured. Talking about the total loss between the two countries, there was not much difference. The number of Indian soldiers being martyred and injured in this war was 2430, while the number of injured and dying soldiers of China was 2417.

Also read: Why does America object to India’s oil relations with Russia? Know what India buys from Russia