Desk Correspondent , New Delhi - China has renamed 23 locations inside Arunachal Pradesh using Chinese and Tibetan‑style names, marking its fourth such move since 2017 and reigniting border tensions with India. The new names, issued by Beijing’s Ministry of Civil Affairs, will be used on official Chinese maps and are part of its broader claim that the Indian state lies in a region it calls “Zangnan” or southern Tibet.

India has sharply rejected the exercise, calling it a “senseless” and “vain” attempt that cannot alter the reality that Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will remain an integral part of India. Officials note this round of renaming comes shortly after high‑profile Indian infrastructural and political activity in the state, including visits by senior leaders and the inauguration of strategic projects meant to strengthen connectivity along the Line of Actual Control.

Analysts describe the renaming as a form of “cartographic assertion,” where China uses official maps to project territorial influence without necessarily changing on‑ground control. They argue the repeated name‑lists are less about geography and more about signalling Beijing’s political stance, deepening diplomatic friction with New Delhi even as both sides continue to manage a fragile border standoff.