India on Friday formally marked 27 locations and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh on the official maps of the Survey of India, a move that comes amid repeated attempts by China to rename places in the border state.
According to an official statement, the exercise was carried out in consultation with the Government of Arunachal Pradesh and is intended to ensure accurate identification of these places and improve public awareness.
“The Government of India, in consultation with the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh, has marked a total of twenty-seven (27) locations/geographical features situated in Arunachal Pradesh on the official maps of the Survey of India, along with their standard names,” a Home Ministry statement said.
“The objective of formally marking these on the Survey of India’s map of Arunachal Pradesh is to facilitate their precise identification and foster greater awareness among the general public,” it added.
The development comes against the backdrop of China periodically releasing lists of so-called standardised names for places in Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing refers to as Zangnan.
New Delhi has consistently rejected these exercises, maintaining that they have no bearing on India’s sovereignty over the state.
India has repeatedly described the Chinese renaming exercise as “vain and preposterous” and asserted that it will not change the “undeniable” reality that Arunachal Pradesh “was, is, and will” remain an integral part of India.
Among the places formally identified on the Survey of India map is Longju, located along the Line of Actual Control. Longju was one of the earliest flashpoints in India-China border tensions when Chinese forces entered the area in 1959. Nearby Maja village in Upper Subansiri district has also been included.
The notified locations include several strategically important high-altitude passes such as Dzo La, Riza La and Pukur La. Thag La, where one of the opening battles of the 1962 India-China war took place, has also been formally marked on the official map.
Jairampur in Changlang district, an important logistics hub that supports movement of security forces towards eastern Arunachal Pradesh and the Myanmar frontier, is among the identified locations.
Other places listed include Sambho Sarovar, a high-altitude lake, Bara Kundun, Chhota Kundun, Dhan Bari, Pritnagar, Teritnagar, Ramnagar and Jaswant Garh, which houses the memorial of 1962 war hero Jaswant Singh Rawat on the Tawang road. Villages such as Sagar, Padma, Jyotinagar and Baisakhi have also been marked.
The list further includes Sher-e-Thapa Memorial, which commemorates 1962 war hero Trilok Singh Thapa, along with Chhota Ropuk, Bara Ropuk, Shivaji Nagar, Sunpura, Kamlang Nagar and Buddhamandir.
The list of 27 places:
Name of place1Longju2Maja3Bisa4Dzo La5Riza La6Pukur La7Thag La8Sambho Sarovar9Bara Kundun10Chhota Kundun11Dhan Bari12Pritnagar13Buddhamandir14Jairampur15Teritnagar16Ramnagar17Jaswant Garh18Sagar19Padma20Jyotinagar21Baisakhi22Sher-e-Thapa Memorial23Chhota Ropuk24Bara Ropuk25Shivaji Nagar26Sunpura27Kamlang Nagar
The government said the formal marking of these places has been done along with their standard names and locations on the official Survey of India map.
New Delhi has maintained that Chinese efforts to assign what it calls fictitious names to Indian territory are aimed at creating “baseless narratives” and cannot alter the situation on the ground. India has also warned that such actions could undermine efforts to improve bilateral relations.
China first released a list of six renamed places in Arunachal Pradesh in 2017. A second list covering 15 places followed in 2021, and another list containing 11 names was issued in 2023.
India has consistently reiterated that Arunachal Pradesh is an inseparable part of the country and that administrative or cartographic measures taken by China do not affect India’s legal and territorial position.
– Ends
Published On:
Aug 7, 2026 22:09 IST
