China has advised its?nationals?studying in Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University on ‘life’ and ‘safety’ precautions to follow while residing on campuses in India.

Interestingly, the advisory came on August 17, a couple of days after Indian and Chinese soldiers clashed Pangong Lake in Ladakh, threw stones at each other and?engaged in scuffles. China later blamed India for the violence.

The advisory was issued to the students at a conference in New Delhi where the Indian Embassy Consul Counselor and Consul General Yan Xiaoting, education group leader Sun Meixi, political office director Zhu Songbo, were present. The embassy officials introduced Sino-Indian relations to them and gave them “life precautions” in light of “a large number of fresh collusion case details of the Indian security and security situation”.

Safety precautions were also issued to the students which reminded them pay attention to their person and property, inform family while moving out or in case of travel plans and to “go out hand in hand.”

Others include missives to “respect local customs”, to not engage with students that do not “match their activities” and not get into local dispute and conflict. The?release says?that the students informed the officials that they had been “disturbed” since beginning their academic year in light of a tense situation between the countries.

The advisory to the students come in the background of the Doklam standoff. India and China have been locked in a face-off in the Dokalam area of the Sikkim sector after Indian troops stopped the Chinese Army from building a road in the area. Over the weekend, videos purportedly showed the Indian and PLA troops clashing in Ladakh.

Yesterday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh came out and said that he was positive that the situation ?with the Chinese would improve and that India wanted peace with its neighbours.

"There is a deadlock going on at Dokalam between India and China. I believe there will be a solution soon. I hope China will undertake a positive initiative (to resolve the stand-off)," he said.

The minister said the world knew that India had never cast an evil eye on any country, had never attacked a nation nor did it harbour any expansionist attitude.

"We never want to expand our borders...But I can say that our security forces and defence forces possess all the might to protect our borders," Singh said.

China has been more vocal and blamed India for the clash at Ladakh. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying claimed that the incident occurred when Chinese border troops were conducting normal patrol on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) around the Lake area on August 15.

?"During this process, the Indian side took some violent actions and injured the Chinese border personnel," she claimed.

India says that the incident was discussed by the local army commanders of the two sides.

Hua said "China has expressed strong dissatisfaction and lodged serious representation to India".

With Agency Inputs