In an attempt to keep the troops safe, warm and battle-ready through the winter, the People’s Liberation Army extended electricity supply to border outposts in remote locations, including the strategically important areas along the disputed India-China border.
Quoting PLA Daily, South China Morning Post reported that the national power grid of China is now completely covering border outposts in Xaidulla in Xinjiang Uygur region and Ngari prefecture, located in the western part of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. The prefecture is bordered by Nepal and India to the south and west.
The initiative by the PLA has reduced the troubles faced by soldiers in high-altitude areas with inclement climatic conditions, including access to drinking water, oxygen and heating facilities.
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"This marks a structural change in the energy security of all high-elevation border defence outposts in the military," according to PLA Daily.
China has been making efforts to improve infrastructure in the border areas, and enhancing power supply to troops in such areas has been a priority. In 2016, the National Energy Administration and the military had launched a project to build power grids for the troops.
According to PLA Daily, as of January 2024, the national grid had covered more than 700 frontier outposts.
The logistic support department of the Central Military Commission worked with the National Energy Administration to construct power grids for border defence troops.
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Supplying uninterrupted electricity to border outposts would help PLA enhance the border management and control capabilities of the troops.
"Since many border defense outposts are established in remote, unpolluted regions with little human activity, using electricity from the national power grid to replace burning fuel as much as possible can also contribute to the protection of the natural environment," China Military had quoted an expert as saying in a 2014 article.
