Walong | |
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town | |
 Walong War Memorial | |
  Walong Location in Arunachal Pradesh, India | |
| Coordinates:28°8′N97°1′E / 28.133°N 97.017°E /28.133; 97.017 | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Arunachal Pradesh |
| District | Anjaw district |
| • Density | 13/km2 (34/sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| • Official | English |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Nearest city | Tinsukia |
| Lok Sabha constituency | Arunachal East |
| Vidhan Sabha constituency | Hayuliang |
| Climate | Cwa |
Walong is an administrative town and the headquarters of eponymouscircle in theAnjaw district in eastern-most part ofArunachal Pradesh state inIndia. It also has a smallcantonment of the Indian Army. Walong is on banks ofLohit River, which enters India 35 km north of Walong at India-ChinaLAC atKaho pass.
Walong is also the easternmost town in mainlandIndia. It is 20 km south ofKibithu, 60 km west ofDiphu Pass (near India-China-Myanmar tri-junction), and 90 km north of district headquarter atHawai. Anjaw district was carved out ofLohit District in 2004.
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Show zoomed outWalong lies on the west bank of theLohit River, a tributary of theBrahmaputra, approximately 20 kilometres south of the Tibetan border. The forest around Walong is rich in wildlife. Rare mammals such asMishmi takin,Red goral andLeaf muntjac occurs while among birds there is the rareSclater's Monal.[1] A flying squirrel, the Mishmi Hills Giant Flying Squirrel (Petaurista mishmiensis) also occurs in this district.[2]
The enquiries of British officials in 1911 revealed that Walong had been established by Miju Mishmis many years earlier for cattle-rearing and as a refuge for Tibetans who came down or ran away from the north. In the vicinity of Walong, several abandoned villages were found, where Tibetans had lived and then returned to Tibet.[3]
DuringZhao Erfeng's campaigns in southeastern Tibet (Kham), Chinese troops arrived atRima on the Tibetan border.[3] After expelling all the Tibetan officials from there, they entered the Walong area and erected a boundary plank at a location called Menilkrai three miles south of Walong, claiming the area to be part of China. After some coaxing, the headman of Walong admitted to the British political officer in 1914 that the Chinese had sent for him and told him to inform the British officials of their claims.[4] The political officer, T. P. M. O'Callaghan, had the plank and the post promptly removed.[5]
Shortly after the Zhao Erfeng's campaigns, theQing dynasty fell and the Chinese lost all authority in Tibet. Nevertheless, during the 1914Simla Conference, the Chinese made renewed claims to the Walong area as being part of China (as part of western Kham). The claims were rejected by the Tibetan and British delegates. TheMcMahon Line boundary, agreed between Tibet and British India, ran a little south of Rima.
In autumn of 1962, during theSino-Indian War, Walong was the scene of theBattle of Walong, where the Indian Army 11th Infantry Brigade battled the Chinese advances.[7]
The killed and wounded numbered 642 Indians and 752 Chinese.[8] Indians were defeated at Walong, however the Chinese withdrawal allowed India to regain the territory.[6]
A canopied memorial to the Indian war dead of 1962 was erected next to the airstrip with the following verses composed by a Walong veteran inscribed on it:[6]
Walong is approximately 200 km. by road from the district headquarters town ofTezu. It had an Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) which was capable of takingOtters andCaribous during the 1962Sino-Indian War. Thereafter, it remained abandoned for a long time till 2013 when reconstruction of ALG began. The reconstructed ALG was inaugurated on 23 October 2015.[9] There is an operational helipad.
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