LEH, Nov 04: Indian and Chinese  troops are locked in a stand-off at in  Ladakh  after People's Liberation Army (PLA) personnel entered an area where an irrigation canal was being built under the MNREGA scheme and stopped the civilian work.

The incident took place yesterday afternoon in Demchok sector, located 250 km east of Leh, where the work for linking a village with 'Hot spring' was being undertaken under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA).

Around 50 Chinese troops arrived at the scene and halted the work prompting the Army and Indo-Tibetan Border Police(ITBP) personnel to rush to the spot and stop the high-handedness of Chinese troops, reports said.

The Chinese troops took positions on the perceived Line of Actual Control (LAC) and demanded that work be stopped as either side needs to take permission before undertaking any work, a claim disputed by the Indian side which says that as per the agreement between the two countries, information about construction needs to be shared only if it was meant for defence purposes, reports said.