Sonam Wangchuk | |
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![]() Wangchuk in 2017 | |
Born | |
Education |
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Alma mater |
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Occupation(s) | Engineer, educator |
Organization | Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh |
Known for | Ice Stupa, SECMOL, Ladags Melong, Operation New Hope |
Parents |
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Awards | Global Award for Sustainable Architecture (2017) [1] Fred M. Packard Award (2016) [2] Rolex Awards for Enterprise (2016) [3] Real Heroes Award (2008) Ashoka Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurship (2002) [4] Ramon Magsaysay Award (2018) [4] |
Sonam Wangchuk (born 1 September 1966) is an Indian engineer, innovator and education reformist. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] He is the founding-director of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), which was founded in 1988 by a group of students who had been in his own words, the 'victims' of an alien education system foisted on Ladakh. [11] [12] He is also known for designing the SECMOL campus that runs on solar energy and uses no fossil fuels for cooking, lighting or heating. [13] [14] [15]
Wangchuk was instrumental in the launch of Operation New Hope in 1994, a collaboration of government, village communities and the civil society to bring reforms in the government school system. [16] He invented the Ice Stupa technique that creates artificial glaciers, used for storing winter water in the form of a cone-shaped ice heap. [17] [18] [19]
Wangchuk was born in 1966 in near Alchi in the Leh district of Ladakh. He was not enrolled in a school until the age of 9, as there were not any schools in his village. His mother taught him all the basics in his own mother tongue until that age. [20] [16] His father Sonam Wangyal, a Congress politician who later became the minister in state government, was stationed in Srinagar. At the age of 9, he was taken to Srinagar and enrolled in a school in Srinagar. Since he looked different compared to the other students, he would get addressed in a language that he did not understand, due to which his lack of responsiveness was mistaken for him being stupid. He recalls this period as the darkest part of his life. Unable to bear the treatment, in 1977 he escaped alone to Delhi where he pleaded his case to the school principal at Vishesh Kendriya Vidyalaya. [3]
Wangchuk completed his B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering from National Institute of Technology Srinagar (then REC Srinagar) in 1987. [21] [ failed verification ] Due to differences with his father over the choice of engineering stream, he had to finance his own education. He also went for two years of higher studies in Earthen Architecture at Craterre School of Architecture in Grenoble, France, in 2011. [22]
In 1988, after his graduation, Wangchuk (with his brother and five peers) started Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL). After experimenting with school reforms in government high school at Saspol, SECMOL launched Operation New Hope in collaboration with the government education department and the village population. [16] [4] [6]
From June 1993 until August 2005, Wangchuk also founded and worked as the editor of Ladakh's only print magazine Ladags Melong [23] [4] In 2001, he was appointed to be an advisor for the education in the Hill Council Government. [24] In 2002, together with other NGO heads, he founded Ladakh Voluntary Network (LVN), a network of Ladakhi NGOs, and served in its executive committee as the secretary till 2005. He was appointed to the Drafting Committee of the Ladakh Hill Council Government’s Vision Document Ladakh 2025 and entrusted with the formulation of the policy on Education and Tourism in 2004. [25] The document was formally launched by Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister of India in 2005. In 2005, Wangchuk was appointed as a member in the National Governing Council for Elementary Education in the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. [25]
From 2007 to 2010, Wangchuk worked as an education advisor for MS, a Danish NGO working to support the Ministry of Education for education reforms. [26]
In late 2013, Wangchuk invented and built a prototype of the Ice Stupa which is an artificial glacier that stores the wasting stream waters during the winters in the form of giant ice cones or stupas, and releases the water during late spring as they start melting, which is the perfect time when the farmers need water. [27] He was appointed to the Jammu and Kashmir State Board of School Education in 2013. In 2014, he was appointed to the Expert panel for framing the J&K State Education Policy and Vision Document. Since 2015, Sonam has started working on establishing Himalayan Institute of Alternatives. He is concerned about how most of the Universities, especially those in the mountains have become irrelevant to realities of life. [28]
In 2016, Wangchuk initiated a project called FarmStays Ladakh, which provides tourists to stay with local families of Ladakh, run by mothers and middle-aged women. The project was officially inaugurated by Chetsang Rinpoche on 18 June 2016. [29]
Wangchuk has been helping in designing and overseeing the construction of several passive solar mud buildings in mountain regions like Ladakh, Sikkim and in Nepal so that energy savings principles are implemented on a larger scale. Even in -30 Celsius winters, his solar-powered school, built with the rammed earth, keeps the students warm. [12] [30] [31]
Led by Wangchuk, SECMOL has won the International Terra Award for the best building in July 2016 at the 12th World Congress on Earthen Architecture in Lyon, France. [32] The rammed earth 'Big Building', located at SECMOL. The campus was built using simple, low-cost traditional techniques on principles of passive solar architecture. [12] The building comprises a big solar-heated teaching hall, along with several rooms for the students and other classrooms. [20]
In January 2014, Wangchuk started a project called the Ice Stupa. His aim was to find a solution to the water crisis being faced by the farmers of Ladakh in the critical planting months of April and May before the natural glacial melt waters start flowing. By the end of February in 2014, they had successfully built a two-storey prototype of an ice stupa which could store roughly 150,000 litres of winter stream water which nobody wanted at the time. [33] [16] [34] [35]
In 2015, when Ladakh faced a crisis due to a landslide which blocked the Phugtal river in Zanskar and caused formation of 15 km long lake which became a huge threat for the downstream population, Wangchuk proposed to use a siphon technique to drain the lake and water jet erosion to safely cut the edges instead of blasting the lake as was being planned. However, his advice was ignored and blasting work was carried on. On 7 May 2015, the lake finally burst into flash flood which destroyed 12 bridges and many fields. [36] [37] [38]
In 2016, Wangchuk started applying the Ice Stupa technique for disaster mitigation at high altitude glacier lakes. He was invited by the Government of Sikkim to apply siphon technique for another dangerous lake in their state. In September 2016, he led a three-week expedition to the South Lhonak Lake in North-West Sikkim, which had been declared dangerous for the last few years. [39] His team camped for two weeks at the lake, amidst rain and snow, installing the first phase of a siphoning system to drain the lake to a safer level until other measures were taken up. [40] [41]
In late 2016, the idea started gaining traction from the authorities in the Swiss Alps. Wangchuk was invited by the president of Pontresina, a municipality in the Engadine valley, Switzerland to build Ice Stupas to add to their winter tourism attractions. [42] In October 2016, Wangchuk and his team went to the Swiss Alps and started building the first Ice Stupa of Europe, together with the Swiss partners. [43] [44] [45]
In February 2018, a group of young local sculptors and artists from Ladakh built an actual 10-feet high ice stupa. The wondrous sculpture is made entirely of ice and it took them 25 days of hard work and dedication to complete the project. As the stupa was housed inside another giant ice tower (ice stupa artificial glacier), it was made in very low temperature of around -12 degrees Celsius. [46]
In February 2021, Wangchuk developed solar-powered tents for the Indian army. Each tent can accommodate around 10 soldiers. According to Wangchk, he came up with this innovation when he learned that around 50,000 Indian soldiers were working in harsh weather conditions in high-altitude areas. [47] [48] This invention traps the heat energy during the daytime and utilizes this energy to keep the tent warm during night. [49]
In 2013, on repeated requests from students community of Ladakh, Wangchuk helped launch the New Ladakh Movement (NLM), a social campaign and Ladakh's version of Green Party [50] with the aim of working for sustainable education, environment and economy. [51] It also aimed at uniting all local political leaders under one banner for the growth and development of Ladakh. [52] Eventually, the members decided to make it into a non-political social movement.
In June 2020, in response to the India-China border skirmishes, Sonam Wangchuk appealed to Indians to use "wallet power" and boycott Chinese products. [53] This appeal was covered by major media houses and supported by various celebrities. [53] [54] Following the Galwan Valley clash on 15 June 2020, there were calls across India to boycott Chinese goods. [55] [56]
On 26 January 2023, to highlight the effects of climate change on the fragile ecosystem of Ladakh and to demand its protection under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, Wangchuk attempted to go on a fast at the Khardungla pass. However, the authorities prevented him from going to Khardungla by putting him under house arrest, restricting his movement, as well as restricting people from visiting him. The police denied the charges, stating that he had not been given permission to enter Khardung La pass, citing temperatures being unsuitable for the fast, at less than -40°C. [57] They also detained a few of his students supporting him from the HIAL campus. Wangchuk continued to voice his protest and fasting from the HIAL campus.
In March 2024, he started a fast-unto-death to press for his demand for constitutional safeguards for the Union Territory and protection of Ladakh from industrial and mining lobbies. [58] He also began a 21-day Climate Fast hunger strike for giving statehood to Union Territory Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule. [59] [60]
Wangchuk came into the spotlight in 2009, when his story inspired Aamir Khan's character Phunsukh Wangdu in the film 3 Idiots directed by Rajkumar Hirani. [23] He has been referred as "The real life Phunsukh Wangdu". [3] However he says that he is not Phunsukh Wangdu. [61] [62]
Year | Title |
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2018 | Ramon Magsaysay Award [63] |
2018 | Honorary D.Litt by Symbiosis International [64] |
2018 | Eminent Technologist of the Himalayan Region by IIT Mandi [65] |
2017 | Indians for Collective Action (ICA) Honor Award, San Francisco, CA [66] |
2017 | GQ Men of the Year Awards, Social Entrepreneur of the Year [67] |
2017 | Global Award for Sustainable Architecture [68] |
2017 | State Award for outstanding environmentalist by J&K Govt. [69] |
2016 | Rolex Award for Enterprise [70] |
2016 | International Terra Award for best earth building [20] |
2014 | UNESCO Chair Earthen Architecture, by CRATerre France [71] |
2008 | Real Heroes Award by CNN-IBN TV [72] |
2004 | The Green Teacher Award by Sanctuary Asia [73] |
2002 | Ashoka Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurship, by Ashoka USA [4] |
2001 | Man of the Year by The Week [74] |
1996 | Governor's Medal for educational reform in Jammu and Kashmir [75] |
Ladakh is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India and China since 1959. Ladakh is bordered by the Tibet Autonomous Region to the east, the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh to the south, both the Indian-administered union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan to the west, and the southwest corner of Xinjiang across the Karakoram Pass in the far north. It extends from the Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram range to the north to the main Great Himalayas to the south. The eastern end, consisting of the uninhabited Aksai Chin plains, is claimed by the Indian Government as part of Ladakh, but has been under Chinese control.
Leh is a city in Ladakh in the Himalayan region. It is the largest city and the joint capital of Ladakh. Leh, located in the Leh district, was also the historical capital of the Kingdom of Ladakh. The seat of the kingdom, Leh Palace, the former residence of the royal family of Ladakh, was built in the same style and about the same time as the Potala Palace in Tibet. Since they were both constructed in a similar style and at roughly the same time, the Potala Palace in Tibet and Leh Palace, the royal residence, are frequently contrasted. Leh is at an altitude of 3,524 m (11,562 ft), and is connected via National Highway 1 to Srinagar in the southwest and to Manali in the south via the Leh-Manali Highway.
Nubra, also called Dumra, is a historical region of Ladakh, India that is currently administered as a subdivision and a tehsil in the Leh 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.
Ladakh has a long history with evidence of human settlement from as back as 9000 b.c. It has been a crossroad of high Asia for thousands of years and has seen many cultures, empires and technologies born in its neighbours. As a result of these developments Ladakh has imported many traditions and culture from its neighbours and combining them all gave rise to a unique tradition and culture of its own.
The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh is one among the two Autonomous District Council of Ladakh Union Territory. LAHDC Leh administers the Leh district of Ladakh, India.
Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) is an organization in Ladakh, India concerned with interests of Buddhists in Ladakh. It was founded in 1933 by King Jigmet Dadul Namgyal, Kalon Tsewang Rigzin, lachumir Munshi Sonam Tsewang and Kalon Bankapa Morup Gyaltsan
The Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh is an Indian non-governmental organisation based in Leh, Ladakh, India.
Dras, also known locally in Shina as Himababs, Hembabs, or Humas, is a town and hill station, near Kargil in the Kargil district of the union territory of Ladakh in India. It is on the NH 1 between Zoji La pass and Kargil. A tourist hub for its high-altitude trekking routes and tourist sites, it is often called "The Gateway to Ladakh". The government's official spelling of the town's name is "Drass".
Korzok, དཀོར་མཛོད་ is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery belonging to the Drukpa Lineage. It is located in the Korzok village, on the northwestern bank of Tso Moriri, a lake in Leh District of Ladakh, a union territory of India. The gompa (monastery), at 4,560 metres (14,960 ft), houses a Shakyamuni Buddha and other statues. It is home to about seventy monks.
The Ladakh Scouts is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army, nicknamed as the "Snow Warriors" or "Snow Leopards". The regiment specializes in mountain warfare, and its primary role is to guard India's borders in the high altitudes of the Union Territory of Ladakh.
Zoji La is a high mountain pass in the Himalayas. It is in the Kargil district, Indian Union territory of Ladakh. Located in the Dras subdivision, the pass connects the Kashmir Valley to its west with the Dras and Suru valleys to its northeast and the Indus valley further east. National Highway #1 between Srinagar and Leh in the western section of the Himalayan mountain range, traverses the pass. As of late 2022, an all-weather Zoji-la Tunnel is under construction to mitigate seasonal road blockages due to heavy snowfall.
Chewang Norphel is an Indian civil engineer from Ladakh, who has built 15 artificial glaciers. He has earned the title of Ice Man.
Colonel Sonam Wangchuk, MVC is an Indian Army veteran, who served with the Assam Regiment and the Ladakh Scouts. He was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra, India's second highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, during his successful operation in the Kargil War. Due to his exemplary feet as a Major during Kargil War, he is known as the Lion of Ladakh in the Indian Army.
The Khurnak Fort is a ruined fort on the northern shore of Pangong Lake, which spans eastern Ladakh in India and Rutog County in the Tibet region of China. The area of the Khurnak Fort is disputed by India and China, and has been under Chinese administration since 1958.
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.
Tsering Samphel is an Indian politician. Samphel supports the demand to give Ladakh Union Territory status.
Tashi Rabgias Indian scholar and historian who belonged to the Union Territory of Ladakh. He was a scholar of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. He commanded great expertise over the Bhoti language. He has many books to his credit. He has a collection of more than 200 folk songs for which he was awarded a Robe of Honour by the Art Culture and Language Department, Govt of Jammu and Kashmir.
Tangtse or Drangtse (Tibetan: བྲང་རྩེ, Wylie: brang rtse, THL: drang tsé) is a village in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is located in the Durbuk tehsil. Traditionally, it was regarded as the border between the Nubra region to the north and the Pangong region to the south. It was a key halting place on the trade route between Turkestan and Tibet. It was also a site of wars between Ladakh and Tibet.
Ice stupa is a form of glacier grafting technique that creates artificial glaciers, used for storing winter water in the form of conical shaped ice heaps. During summer, when water is scarce, the ice melts to increase water supply for crops. Channelling and freezing water for irrigation has existed for hundreds of years. It was invented, popularised and scaled up by Sonam Wangchuk in Ladakh, India as a piece of art and reform. The project is undertaken by the NGO Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh. Launched in October 2013, the test project started in January 2014 under the project name The Ice Stupa Project. On 15 November 2016, Sonam Wangchuk was awarded the Rolex Awards for Enterprise for his work on ice stupa.
Chering Dorjay is an Indian politician and was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Dorjay was a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council from the Assembly Kashmir (Ladakh). He was Minister for Cooperatives and Ladakh Affairs in Jammu and Kashmir till 19 June 2018.