China’s attempt to rename 27 places in Arunachal Pradesh has once again highlighted the sensitive nature of India-China relations.
In response to frequent attempts by China to rename some places in Arunachal Pradesh, India on Friday (August 7, 2026) formally identified 27 places — including land, passes, a lake and a monument — in the border State by their standard names on the official Indian map.
The Global Times, China’s Communist Party-run newspaper carried a report which said, “China has been carrying out standardisation of geographical names in the region for a long time. At a time when China-India relations are showing signs of improvement and leaders from both countries are expected to engage through multilateral platforms, any unilateral action by India that escalates the border situation shows no point and will not serve the broader interests of bilateral relations.” Qian Feng, director of the research department at Tsinghua university’s national strategy institute, was quoted.
India should avoid turning border issue into a larger dispute, as such actions could stifle the improving political ties between the two countries, the report further said.
According to the report, Since 2017, China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs has released six batches of standardised names for locations, with a total of 112 names announced as of April 2026. These names cover villages, mountain passes, rivers and peaks, accompanied by standardised Chinese and Tibetan names as well as geographic coordinates. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a routine press briefing on April 14 that China does not recognise Arunachal Pradesh.
