Ganokh Ganisha Ganoks | |
|---|---|
Village | |
  Ganokh  Ganokh  Ganokh | |
| Coordinates: 34°45′23″N76°18′28″E / 34.75639°N 76.30778°E | |
| Country | Pakistan |
| Province | Gilgit-Baltistan |
| District | Kharmang |
| Time zone | UTC+5 (PST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+6 (GMT+5) |
 | |
Ganokh, [lower-alpha 1] (Wylie : ga nog) [4] locally called Ganishah, [2] is a village in the Kharmang District of Baltistan, Pakistan, close to the Line of Control with Indian-administered Ladakh. It is populated by Brokpas professing Shia Islam. [5]
The village of Ganokh consists of two census settlements, Gambat Ganokh and Goma Ganokh. Both lie in the valley of the Ganokh Nala, a tributary of the Indus River. The Line of Control (LOC) with Indian-administered Kashmir (Ladakh) run south of the valley, about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) along the Indus, on a ridge line that forms the watershed between the Ganokh Nala and the Ghargurdo and Yaldor Nalas on the other. [lower-alpha 2] It continues on to the Chorbat La pass.
Ganokh is populated by Brokpas professing Shia Islam. [5] According to a 2022 news report, it is the only village in Pakistan where the Brokskat language is spoken. [6]
Historically, Ganokh and the adjacent regions were populated by Brokpa people. Folklore maintains that they arrived there from the Gilgit region through the Gavis valley (to the north of the Ganokh valley) and colonised Ganokh, Yaldor, and Hanu before spreading to Dha. [7] Their chieftains wielded significant autonomy in the region, pledging nominal allegiance to the Maqpon rulers of Skardu. [3]
However, things changed in the seventeenth century when Jamyang Namgyal of Ladakh faced a conflict with Ali Sher Khan Anchan of Skardu and had to accept Gurgurdho as a boundary between their territories. [3] Consequently, Ganokh was integrated into Baltistan and became influenced by Shia Islam. [3] Nevertheless, the local Brokpas continued to maintain marital relations with their ethnic kin in the Dah Hanu region of Ladakh; cross-border trade also occurred, with the village serving as a tax collection post. [3]
Family connections ceased when the latter accepted Buddhism in c. late nineteenth century. [3] In the aftermath of the First Kashmir War (1947–1948), Ganokh fell in Pakistan and became permanently inaccessible for Dah-Hanu Brokpas. [2] During the 1999 Kargil War, the Ganokh valley provided a key infiltration route for Pakistani forces, through which they accessed the Dah-Hanu region. [8] The ensuing shelling and fighting caused much loss of life and property in Ganokh; many had to be evacuated and remain internally displaced even two decades after the war. [9]
Baltistan also known as Baltiyul or Little Tibet, is a mountainous region in the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilgit–Baltistan. It is located near the Karakoram and borders Gilgit to the west, China's Xinjiang to the north, Indian-administered Ladakh to the southeast, and the Indian-administered Kashmir Valley to the southwest. The average altitude of the region is over 3,350 metres (10,990 ft). Baltistan is largely administered under the Baltistan Division.
Kargil district is a district in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir-region. It is one of the two districts comprising the Indian-administered union territory of Ladakh. The district headquarters are in the city of Kargil. The district is bounded by the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir to the west, the Pakistani-administered administrative territory of Gilgit–Baltistan to the north, Ladakh's Leh district to the east, and the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh to the south. Encompassing three historical regions known as Purig, Dras and Zanskar, the district lies to the northeast of the Great Himalayas and encompasses the majority of the Zanskar Range. Its population inhabits the river valleys of the Dras, Suru, Wakha Rong, and Zanskar.
Skardu is a city located in Gilgit-Baltistan, in Pakistan. Skardu serves as the capital of Skardu District and the Baltistan Division. It is situated at an average elevation of nearly 2,500 metres above sea level in the Skardu Valley, at the confluence of the Indus and Shigar rivers. The city is an important gateway to the eight-thousanders of the nearby Karakoram mountain range. The Indus River running through the region separates the Karakoram from the Ladakh Range.
Dah and Hanu are two villages of the Brokpa of the Leh District of the Indian union territory of Ladakh. Until 2010, these were the only two villages where tourists were allowed to visit out of a number of Brokpa villages.
Kargil or Kargyil is a city in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region. It is the joint capital of Ladakh, an Indian-administered union territory. It is also the headquarters of the Kargil district. It is the second-largest city in Ladakh after Leh. Kargil is located 204 kilometres (127 mi) east of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, and 234 kilometres (145 mi) to the west of Leh. It is on the bank of the Suru River near its confluence with the Wakha Rong river, the latter providing the most accessible route to Leh.
Ladakh is an administrative territory of India that has been under its control since 1947. The geographical region of Ladakh union territory is the highest altitude plateau region in India, incorporating parts of the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges and the upper Indus River and valley.
The Brokpa, sometimes referred to as Minaro, are a small ethnic group mostly found in the union territory of Ladakh, India around the villages of Dha and Hanu. Some of the community are also located across the Line of Control in Baltistan in the villages around Ganokh. They speak an Indo-Aryan language called Brokskat. The Brokpa are mostly Vajrayana Buddhist while some are Muslim.
Batalik is a village and military base in Ladakh, India, located in a narrow section of the Indus river valley, close to the Line of Control with Pakistan-administered Baltistan. It was a focal point of the 1999 Kargil War because of its strategic location between Kargil, Leh and Baltistan.
Juglot or Jaglot is a town located in the Gilgit District of Gilgit-Baltistan region in Pakistan. It is situated 45 kilometres (28 mi) southeast of the regional capital city of Gilgit on the Karakoram Highway. The town is situated at the junction of three major mountain ranges: the Karakoram, the Hindu Kush and the Himalayas. The confluence of Gilgit and Indus rivers is also located nearby.
Chorbat Valley is a section of the Shyok river valley divided between Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan and Indian-administered Ladakh. The Pakistan-administered portion is in the Khaplu tehsil of Ghanche District in Gilgit–Baltistan, and the Indian-administered portion is in the Nubra tehsil, Leh district of Ladakh. Chorbat stretches from the edge of Khaplu to the Chalunka village of Nubra.
The Kharmang Valley, also known as Kartaksho, is one of the five main valleys situated in Gilgit–Baltistan region of Pakistan. The area became an individual district in 2015, with its temporary headquarters set at the town of Tolti. The valley is located 120 kilometres (75 mi) from the city of Skardu.
Dah is a panchayat village in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is the most prominent of all the Brokpa settlements, other than Dah, it has six hamlets: Biama(or phunder), Baldes, Sannit, Pardos, Lastyang and Dundur It is located east of Batalik in Aryan Valley of Indus river of Ladakh in the Khalsi tehsil.
The Skardu–Kargil Road is a 126-kilometre (78 mi) provincial highway in the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilgit–Baltistan, running from the city of Skardu to the Line of Control with the Indian-administered territory of Ladakh, via the Kharmang Valley. The original road continued to run until the town of Kargil, but has been closed since 1948.
Garkon is a panchayat village in the Aryan valley region located in the Kargil block of Kargil district, in a rural region of the Indian union territory of Ladakh. It is located east of Batalik in Aryan Valley of Indus river system.
Siksa is a village in the sub division Chorbat Valley, Ghanche District of Gilgit-Baltistan, lying 150 kilometres (93 mi) east of Skardu, near the border of Pakistan and India at an elevation of 2,725 metres (8,940 ft).
Darchik is a village in the Kargil district of Ladakh, primarily populated by the Brokpa people.
Chulichan is a village in the Kargil district of Ladakh, India, close to the Line of Control with Pakistan-administered Kashmir. It is populated by Shia Brokpas and Baltis.
Aryan Valley, historically known as Dah Hanu region, is an area comprising four village clusters — Dah and Hanu in Leh district, and Garkon and Darchik in Kargil district — in Central Ladakh in India. It is inhabited by Brokpa people of Dardic origin. Until its absorption into the Maryul kingdom, Brokpa chiefs wielded nominal autonomy in the region.
The Bono-na or Bono nah is an ancient festival of the Minaro ( Brokpa) people hosted alternatively between Dha and Garkon villages of the Aryan Valley region of Ladakh, India with a gap of a year. It is a festival of thanksgiving to their deities and gods for good crops and prosperity to the people and the land of Minaro.
Marol is a village situated near the confluence of the Suru River and the Indus River in the Kharmang District of Baltistan, Pakistan. It is close to the India–Pakistan border (LOC).