People living at Nathu La area also got sweets from the Army on Independence Day

Highlights People living at Nathu La area also got sweets from the Army

Sikkim CM Pawan Chamling said the region is of great strategic importance

Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a standoff in Doklam

Indian and Chinese soldiers exchanged sweets at Nathu La mountain pass in Sikkim today on India's Independence Day. However, no ceremonial meeting was held between the officers of the Indian Army and China's People's Liberation Army at the high-altitude area, amid the standoff at Doklam.Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police personnel exchanged sweets at Nathu La, barely 25 kilometres from Doklam where both sides have dug in for over two months now, military sources said.Tradition was such that officers from the two sides would hold a ceremonial meeting on India's Independence Day. But it did not happen this time, news agency PTI reported.People living at Nathu La area also got sweets from the Army as part of the Independence Day celebrations.At an event in Sikkim's capital Gangtok, Chief Minister Pawan Chamling said the state lies in a region that is of great strategic importance to India. "Our people are like unpaid soldiers defending our motherland. Unbounded peace and harmony for people living in the border states are great assets for the nation," Mr Chamling said in his Independence Day speech."I am pleased to say that the state government of Sikkim and every Sikkimese... stand solidly behind the central government to safeguard the integrity and sovereignty of our great nation," he added.Neither India nor China has shown any sign of backing off from a face-off that began nearly two months ago along the Sikkim border when Indian soldiers entered the Doklam plateau to stop the Chinese army from constructing a road.

Bhutan says Doklam is part of its kingdom. India, a close ally of Bhutan, deployed troops to stop the road project, prompting Beijing to accuse India of trespassing on Chinese soil.With inputs from PTI