The Karakoram is a mountain range in the Kashmir region spanning the border of Pakistan, China, and India, with the northwestern extremity of the range extending to Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Most of the Karakoram mountain range falls under the jurisdiction of Gilgit-Baltistan, which is controlled by Pakistan. Its highest peak, K2, is located in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. It begins in the Wakhan Corridor (Afghanistan) in the west, encompasses the majority of Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan and extends into Ladakh and Aksai Chin. It is part of the larger Trans-Himalayan mountain ranges.
Saser Kangri is a mountain in India. It is the highest peak in the Saser Muztagh, the easternmost subrange of the Karakoram range. Sasir Kangri is located within Ladakh.
K12 is the second highest peak in the Saltoro Mountains, a subrange of the Karakoram range in the Siachen region and is administered as a part of Ladakh territory. Its name comes from its designation given during the original survey of the Karakoram range. In 1984, an Indian army expedition under Colonel Prem Chand took hold of this peak, from the side of Siachen glacier by traversing from the west.
Nubra, also called Dumra, is a historical region of Ladakh, India that is currently administered as a subdivision and a tehsil in the Nubra district. Its inhabited areas form a tri-armed valley cut by the Nubra and Shyok rivers. Its Tibetan name Dumra means "valley of flowers". Demands have been raised and BJP has hinted at creation of Nubra as a new district. Diskit, the headquarters of Nubra, is 120 km north of Leh, the capital of Ladakh.
The Saltoro Mountains form a subrange within the Karakoram Range and are situated in the southeastern part of the Karakoram. They lie on the southwest side of the Siachen Glacier, which is one of the two longest glaciers in the world outside the polar regions. The name "Saltoro" is also associated with the Saltoro Valley, located west of this range and descending on the Pakistani side of the Saltoro Range, which generally follows the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL).
The Rimo Muztagh is one of the most remote subranges of the Karakoram range. The southern part of Rimo Muztagh is in the Ladakh portion of far northwestern India, also claimed by Pakistan. The northern half, including the Rimo massif, is in the Siachen area. It is far from major towns, and close to the militarily sensitive Siachen Glacier, so it has seen little exploration or climbing activity compared to, for example, the nearby Baltoro Muztagh. The highest peak is Mamostong Kangri, 7,516 metres.
The Siachen Muztagh is a remote subrange of the eastern Karakoram Range. Close to 60% is in area controlled by China, 40% in area controlled by India. Pakistan claims the Indian-controlled portion as part of the Siachen Conflict. India claims the Chinese-controlled portion. India administers its portion as part of the Union Territory of Ladakh. China administers its portion as part of Xinjiang province.
The Rimo massif lies in the northern part of the remote Rimo Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram range. It is located about 20 km northeast of the snout of the Siachen Glacier and its main summit, Rimo I is the world's 71st highest mountain with an elevation of 7,385 metres (24,229 ft). The massif heads the large Central Rimo Glacier and South Rimo Glacier, as well as the smaller North Terong Glacier.
Mamostong Kangri or Mamostang Kangri, surveyed as K35, is the highest peak in the remote Rimo Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram range in Ladakh union territory of India. It is located about 30 km east-southeast of the snout of the Siachen Glacier. It is the 48th-highest independent peak in the world.
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 Shyok River is a tributary of the Indus River that flows through northern Ladakh in India and then enters Gilgit–Baltistan, in Pakistan, spanning some 550 km (340 mi).
The Depsang Plains, a high-altitude gravelly plain in the northwest portion of the disputed Aksai Chin region of Kashmir, divided into Indian and Chinese administered portions by a Line of Actual Control. India controls the western portion of the plains as part of Ladakh, while the eastern portion is controlled by China and claimed by India. The Line of Control with Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan is 80 kilometres (50 mi) west of the Depsang Plains, with the Siachen Glacier in-between. Ladakh's traditional trade route to Central Asia passed through the Depsang Plains, with the Karakoram Pass lying directly to its north.
The Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) divides current positions of Indian and Pakistani military posts and troops along the entire 110 kilometres (68 mi) long frontline in the disputed region of Siachen Glacier. AGPL generally runs along the Saltoro Mountains range, beginning from the northernmost point of the (LOC) at Point NJ 9842 and ending in the north on the Indira Ridge at the India-China-Pakistan LAC tripoint near Sia Kangri about 4 km (2.5 mi) northwest of Indira Col West, with peaks in excess of 7,000 m (23,000 ft) and temperatures ranging to around −55 °C (−67 °F). India gained control of 1,000 square miles (2,600 km2) of disputed territory in 1984 because of its military operations in Siachen. A cease-fire was announced in 2003.
NJ9842, also called NJ 980420, is the northernmost demarcated point of the India-Pakistan cease fire line in Kashmir known as the Line of Control (LoC). The India–Pakistan AGPL, begins from the NJ9842 on LoC and ends near the Indira Ridge at the trijunction of areas controlled by China, India, and Pakistan.
Sia Kangri is a mountain in the Baltoro Muztagh in the Karakoram. Its summit lies on the border of Pakistan and China. About a kilometer southeast of the Sia Kangri summit is the tri point where territories controlled by India, Pakistan and China meet. Territories on all sides are disputed. The land immediately to the southwest of the peak is claimed by both Pakistan and India and controlled by Pakistan. The land to the northeast is part of the Trans-Karakoram Tract, controlled by China under a 1963 border agreement with Pakistan but is claimed by India. The land to the southeast is claimed by Pakistan and India, but controlled by India, as a part of Ladakh. It is the 63rd highest mountain in the world, and the 25th highest in Pakistan. The peak is on the watershed between the Indus River basin and the Tarim Basin. Indira Col which is 3 km to the east is India's northernmost point.
Murgo, on "Murgo Nala" near Murgo Hotspring, is a small hilly village which lies near the Line of Actual Control in Leh district of the union territory of Ladakh in India, close to Chinese-controlled Aksai Chin. It is one of the northernmost villages of India. The Murgo Gompa is a large Buddhist monastery at Murgo. Murgo lies on the Darbuk–Shyok–DBO Road and Sasser Brangsa-Murgo Road fork of Sasoma–Sasser La-Saser Brangsa-Gapsam-Daulat Beg Oldi Road, both of which connect Leh to Daulat Beg Oldi. The village is inhabited by a small civilian population of Baltis, who make a living by apricot farming and yak rearing. The temperature plummets as low as -30 C in the winters. The weather deteriorates frequently with strong icy winds lashing much of Murgo. Murgo has very little vegetation or wildlife. Telecommunication at Murgo is only available through INMARSAT satellite phones. The Indian Armed Forces have significant presence in the area.
Sasoma–Sasser La-Saser Brangsa-Gapsam-Daulat Beg Oldi Road 131 km long road through 17,800 feet (5,400 m) high Saser La, and its 18-km-long northwest-to-southeast fork the Sasser Brangsa-Murgo Road, are 30-ft-wide black-topped heavy-military-vehicle-grade motorable road between Nubra Valley and Depsang Plains in Ladakh in India. The sections of SSSG-DBO Road are the 47 km long "Sasoma - Saser La section", 27 km long "Saser La-Saser Brangsa section", 42 km long "Saser Brangsa-Gapsam section" along the upstream of Shyok River which goes northeast of Saser Brangsa, and 10 km long "Gapsam-DBO section". Just after the Saser Brangsa, after crossing the 345 m long bridge over the Shyok River, the SSSG-DBO Road forks into two: 18 km long "Saser Brangsa-Murgo Road" along the downstream of Shyok River which goes southeast of Saser Brangsa, and 52 km long Saser Brangsa-Gapsam-DBO route along the upstream of Shyok River which goes northeast of Saser Brangsa. These forks connect to the Darbuk–Shyok–DBO Road at two places: at Daulat Beg Oldi in northeast and at Murgo in southeast. This strategically important road provides a much shorter alternative access from Nubra Valley to DBO as compared to the longer 230 km route via "DS-DBO Road", reducing the travel time between Nubra valley and DBO from 2 days to mere 6 hours. In September 2023, several sections of the road are already complete, the whole blacktopped route will be completed by October 2024. To provide the all-weather connectivity, the DPR for 7 km long Saser La tunnel under the Saser La till Saser Brangsa was being prepared in June 2023, the tunnel construction will commence in 2025 and will be completed by 2028.
Kataklik Kangri are two of the highest mountains in the mountain group which are located in the east of the Shyok River's upper reaches, which lies in the far west of the Transhimalaya.
Thangman Kangri is one of highest peak in the remote Rimo Muztagh, a subrange of the Karakoram range in Ladakh union territory of India.
