By Saharanpur News Desk 
New Delhi: India’s decision to formally identify 27 locations in Arunachal Pradesh on the official Survey of India map has triggered a fresh diplomatic response from China, reviving tensions over Beijing’s long-standing territorial claims in the northeastern state.
The move comes weeks before the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13, where Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin’s participation has been confirmed, while Xi’s attendance has been reported as likely by multiple Indian media outlets.
India has added 27 locations and geographical features in Arunachal Pradesh to its official map using their standard Indian names.
According to reports, the exercise is aimed at ensuring accurate identification of the locations and improving public awareness of their geographical and historical significance. Several of the locations are close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and have historical significance in the India-China border dispute.
Among the locations identified are Long Ju, Maja and Bisa, along with mountain passes including Dzo La, Riza La, Pukur La and Thag La. The list also includes Jaswant Garh, associated with Indian Army soldier Jaswant Singh Rawat, and the Sher-e-Thapa Memorial, which commemorates 1962 war hero Trilok Singh Thapa.
New Delhi has repeatedly rejected China’s attempts to assign Chinese names to locations in Arunachal Pradesh, maintaining that such naming exercises cannot alter India’s territorial position.
China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of what it calls Zangnan, or southern Tibet, and has repeatedly attempted to reinforce that claim through its own naming and mapping exercises.
Beijing began announcing standardised Chinese names for locations in Arunachal Pradesh in 2017. It followed that with additional lists in 2021 and 2023. In May 2025, China announced Chinese names for another 27 locations in the region. India rejected that move at the time, calling the naming exercise “vain and preposterous” and reiterating that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India.
India’s latest cartographic move is therefore being viewed against a much longer-running dispute over how both countries represent the territory on official maps.
Chinese state-linked media has criticised India’s latest move, arguing that unilateral naming cannot resolve the underlying border dispute. The reaction illustrates how cartography and place names have become part of the broader diplomatic contest between New Delhi and Beijing.
The dispute is not simply about changing names on a map.
For both countries, geographical naming is also a way of reinforcing their respective territorial narratives. China has repeatedly used Chinese names for locations in Arunachal Pradesh as part of its assertion that the region belongs to China. India has consistently rejected those claims.
The latest Indian map exercise similarly strengthens New Delhi’s official representation of the region and places strategically significant locations within India’s standard geographical framework. Several of the newly identified sites are located close to the LAC, making their formal recognition particularly significant.
The development also comes amid renewed attention to the security situation along the India-China border. On August 12, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that maintaining peace and tranquillity along the disputed border remains essential for the broader relationship between the two countries. The statement followed reports concerning developments near Taksing in Arunachal Pradesh, although Indian defence officials rejected claims of Chinese troops entering Indian-controlled territory as unsubstantiated.
The timing of India’s map update is particularly notable because New Delhi is preparing to host the BRICS leaders’ summit in September.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed that he will attend the September 12-13 summit. Chinese President Xi Jinping is also expected to be in New Delhi, according to reports cited by Indian media.
That creates a potentially significant diplomatic backdrop for the latest India-China disagreement.
The Arunachal Pradesh issue is unlikely to disappear from the bilateral relationship simply because the two leaders meet at a multilateral forum. At the same time, China’s participation in the BRICS summit could provide an opportunity for Modi and Xi to engage directly on broader bilateral issues, including the border situation.
Whether the latest cartographic dispute affects Xi’s decision to attend the summit remains uncertain. There is currently no confirmed indication that Beijing plans to cancel his participation because of India’s map update.
India and China have spent years trying to manage tensions along their disputed frontier.
The relationship deteriorated sharply following the 2020 Galwan Valley clash, after which both sides deployed large numbers of troops and military equipment along the LAC. Although subsequent diplomatic and military negotiations have produced disengagement at several friction points, the territorial dispute itself remains unresolved.
The latest map dispute shows that even as New Delhi and Beijing attempt to stabilise relations, both sides continue to firmly defend their respective territorial positions.
For India, formally identifying locations in Arunachal Pradesh is a reaffirmation of its position that the state is an integral part of the country. For China, opposition to such moves remains part of its broader claim over the region.
With the BRICS summit approaching, the response from Beijing—and the eventual decision of Xi Jinping on his visit to New Delhi—will be closely watched as another indicator of the current state of India-China relations.