India is stamping its map on visas given to Chinese visitors, an Indian official said yesterday, after Beijing began issuing passports showing disputed territories - including two in India - as its own.
"We have started issuing visas with India's map as we know it," said a Foreign Ministry official who did not wish to be named.
India's tit-for-tat action comes after Beijing began issuing new passports showing Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai China - regions that New Delhi claims - as part of Chinese territory.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid says the map showing the two areas as part of China is unacceptable.
The response comes amid already strained ties between the two Asian giants. Beijing has also included disputed islands in the South China Sea in the map outline on the new passports, angering both the Philippines and Vietnam, as well as areas including two of Taiwan's most famous scenic spots.
Early last week, the Philippine foreign secretary wrote a protest note to the Chinese embassy, and the Vietnamese government said it had also lodged its objections with Beijing.