Chang Chenmo River

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Chang Chenmo River
Chang-Chenmo (Scottish Geographical Magazine 1909).png
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China Tibet location map.svg
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Location
Country India, China
State / Pronvince Ladakh (India), Tibet Autonomous Region (China)
Physical characteristics
Source Lanak La
 • location Rutog County
 • coordinates 34°21′15″N79°32′41″E / 34.3542°N 79.5446°E / 34.3542; 79.5446
Mouth Shyok River
 • location
 Ladakh
 • coordinates
 34°16′33″N78°17′20″E / 34.2758°N 78.2889°E / 34.2758; 78.2889
 • elevation
12,000 feet (3,700 m) [1]
Length70 miles (110 km) [2]
Basin features
River system Indus River

Chang Chenmo River or Changchenmo River is a tributary of the Shyok River, part of the Indus River system. [3] It is at the southern edge of the disputed Aksai Chin region and north of the Pangong Lake basin.

Contents

The source of Chang Chenmo is near the Lanak Pass in the Chinese-administered region of Kashmir (as part of the Rutog County in Tibet). [1] [3] [4] The river flows west from Lanak La. At the middle of its course lies the Kongka Pass, part of the Line of Actual Control between India and China passes. [5] Continuing west, the river enters a deep gorge in the Karakoram Range until it joins the Shyok River in Ladakh.

Name

Chang Chenmo means "Great Northern" in Tibetic languages. [6] It is primarily the name of the valley rather than the river. [7]

Geography

Changchenmo River Valley. The Changchenmo originates in east near Lanak La, flows in Chinese-held area till Konka La and thereafter in the Indian-held area via Tsogstsalu and Hot Springs to its confluence with Shyok River. on Darbuk-Shyok-DBO Road (DSDBO Road). Its tributary (Survey of India,1916) Changchenmo-Valley-map-Survey-of-India-1916.jpg
Changchenmo River Valley. The Changchenmo originates in east near Lanak La, flows in Chinese-held area till Konka La and thereafter in the Indian-held area via Tsogstsalu and Hot Springs to its confluence with Shyok River. on Darbuk–Shyok–DBO Road (DSDBO Road). Its tributary (Survey of India,1916)
Changchenmo Valley in a US Army map of 1955 Changchenmo-Valley-map-by-US-Army-Map-Service.jpg
Changchenmo Valley in a US Army map of 1955

"Changchenmo-Tsogtsalu Road" (CTR), 55 km long: India's BRO will complete the construction of the 55 km long road, from the confluence of Changchenmo & Shyok rivers to Tsogtsalu by December 2023 (August 2023 update), to connect the strategic strategic Changchenmo sector. [31] In October 2023, NHIDCL invited proposal to complete the "detailed project report" (DPR) to upgrade this road to a single-lane national highway with a 700-metre tunnel. The DPR must be completed in 10 months. The road will be updgraded as per the international standards including "highway design, pavement design, service roads wherever needed, type of intersections, rehabilitation and widening of existing and construction of new bridges and structures, road safety features, quantities of materials, cost estimates, and economic analysis". [32]

"Phobrang-Marsimik La-Tsogtsalu-Hot Springs Road" (PMTHR) or "Marsimik La Road" (MLR): BRO is constructing this motorable black-topped road. [33] It used to be a dirt track built earlier in 1983 under the supervision of Everester Sonam Paljore. Marsimik La in Chang-Chemno Mountain Range is 20 km line of sight and 42 km driving distance northwest of the Pangong Tso, and 4 km south of LAC. [34]

Tourism

Since May 2023, India has opened the Changchenmo sector for the tourism, no Inner Line Permit (ILP) are needed, BRO is building various roads in this sector and police is setting up the tourist check post. Consequently, tourist will be able to travel up to Tsogatsalu and beyond to Hot Springs via Shyok River-Tsogatsalu-Hot Springs Road as well as via the road from Pangong Tso & 18,314-feet-high Marsimik La (pass) to Tsogtsalo pastureland near the confluence of Rimdi Chu and Chang Chenmo rivers. In the next phase tourists will be able to travel up to the Hot Springs and the Police Memorial. The Memorial was constructed to commemorate the sacrifice and martyrdom of ten CRPF soldiers killed on 21 October 1959 by the Chinese while they were on a patrol. [33] [35] "Chak Mandir" is a Hindu temple near the Marsimik La which tourist can visit. [34]

See also

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The Ladakh Range is a mountain range in central Ladakh in India with its northern tip extending into Baltistan in Pakistan. It lies between the Indus and Shyok river valleys, stretching to 230 miles (370 km). Leh, the capital city of Ladakh, is on the foot of Ladakh Range in the Indus river valley.

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Tourism is one of an economic contributor to the union territory of Ladakh in Northern India. The union territory is sandwiched between the Karakoram mountain range to the north and the Himalayas to the south and is situated at the height of 11,400 ft. Ladakh is composed of the Leh and Kargil districts. The region contains prominent Buddhist sites and has an ecotourism industry.

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Marsimik La or Marsemik La, also called Lankar La, elevation 5,582 metres (18,314 ft) is a high mountain pass in the Chang Chenmo Range in the Indian union territory of Ladakh, 96 km (60 mi) east of Leh as the crow flies. Ladakh's route to the Chang Chenmo Valley traverses the pass.

The Kongka Pass or Kongka La is a low mountain pass on the Line of Actual Control between India and China in eastern Ladakh. It lies on a spur of the Karakoram range that intrudes into the Chang Chenmo Valley adjacent to the disputed Aksai Chin region. China claimed the location as its border in a 1956 map, and attacked an Indian patrol party in 1959 killing ten policemen and apprehending ten others. Known as the Kongka Pass incident, the event was a milestone in the escalation of the border dispute between the two countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khurnak Fort</span> Ruined fort in eastern Ladakh

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Lanak La or Lanak Pass is a mountain pass in the disputed Aksai Chin region, administered by China as part of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It is claimed by India as its border pass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murgo</span> Village in Ladakh, India

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.

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.

Durbuk or Darbuk, is a village and the headquarters of the eponymous subdivision and block in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is located in the Durbuk tehsil, and falls between Chang La mountain pass and Tangste village on the way to Pangong Tso Lake.

Hot Springs is a campsite and the location of an Indian border outpost in the Chang Chenmo River valley in Ladakh near the disputed border with China. It is so named because there is a hot spring at this location. The Line of Actual Control near Kongka Pass is only 3 kilometres (2 mi) to the east.

Shyok or Shayok is a village on the bank of the Shyok River in Durbuk tehsil of Leh district in Ladakh, India. It is located at the southern tip of the V-shaped course of the Shyok River, where the Tangtse river joins it from the left. Historically, the winter caravan route from Leh to Yarkand passed through the village. In modern times, India's strategic road to its border post at Daulat Beg Oldi uses the same route.

Noh, also called Üchang or Wujang (Tibetan: དབུས་བྱང, Wylie: dbus byang, THL: wü jang) is a village in the Rutog County, Ngari Prefecture of the Tibet region of China. It is located on the northern bank of the eastern Pangong Lake, watered by the Doma River (Tsanger-schar). The village is now part of the Domar Township.

Gogra (also referred to as Nala Junction) is a pasture and campsite in the Ladakh union territory of India, near the Line of Actual Control with China. It is located in the Kugrang River valley, a branch valley of Chang Chenmo Valley, where the Changlung River flows into Kugrang. During the times of the British Raj, Gogra was a halting spot for travellers to Central Asia via the 'Chang Chenmo route', who proceeded through the Changlung river valley and the Aksai Chin plateau.

Jianan Pass is a mountain pass in the eastern Karakoram Range near the Chang Chenmo Valley. The Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China runs through the pass dividing the Indian-administered Ladakh and Chinese-administered Aksai Chin. The pass lies on the watershed between Kugrang and Galwan river basins. The Changlung river basin is also immediately to the east of the pass. While China uses the name "Jianan Daban" for the pass, India refers to it as Patrol Point 15 (PP-15) for border security purposes. The term "Hot Springs" has also been used by Indian media through misapplication of terminology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tsogtsalu</span> Indian border checkpost in Ladakh, India

Tsogtsalu or Tsolu is a pasture and campsite in the Ladakh union territory of India, in the Chang Chenmo Valley close India's border with China. It is located at the confluence of the Rimdi Chu river that flows down from Marsemik La and the Chang Chenmo River. During the British Raj, this was a halting spot for travellers to Central Asia via the 'Chang Chenmo route', passing through Aksai Chin. After Indian independence, a border outpost was established here by a border police party headed by Captain Karam Singh. It continues to serve as a base for India's border forces.

References

  1. 1 2 Sharma, Raghav Sharan (6 December 2017). The Unfought War of 1962: An Appraisal. Taylor & Francis. p. 39. ISBN   978-1-351-05636-6. The tributary originates from Lanak la under Chinese possession.
  2. ↑ Drew, The Jummoo and Kashmir Territories (1875), pp. 327–328.
  3. 1 2 Negi, Sharad Singh (1991). Himalayan Rivers, Lakes, and Glaciers. Indus Publishing. pp. 53–. ISBN   978-81-85182-61-2. The Chang Chenmo river is a tributary of the Shyok river which joins the Indus river in Ladakh. This river originates from a large glacier on the western slopes of the Lanak La pass
  4. 1 2 Bhonsale, Mihir (February 2018). "Understanding Sino-Indian Border Issues: An Analysis of Incidents Reported in the Indian Media" (PDF). Observer Research Foundation. p. 7.
  5. ↑ Malhotra, A. (2003). Trishul: Ladakh And Kargil 1947-1993. Lancer Publishers. p. 41. ISBN   978-81-7062-296-3. The Chang Chenmo River. It originates from Lanak La, flows westward and joins the Shyok.
  6. ↑ Shaw, Robert (1871). Visits to High Tartary, Yârkand, and Kâshgar (formerly Chinese Tartary): And Return Journey Over the Karakoram Pass. J. Murray. p. 81. Chang-chenmo means "Great-Northern (River)"
  7. ↑ Drew, The Jummoo and Kashmir Territories (1875) , p. 327: "Changchenmo is the name of a long valley, tributary to the Shayok [Shyok], which extends nearly east and west for more than 70 miles as the crow flies."
  8. ↑ Trinkler, Emil (1931), "Notes on the Westernmost Plateaux of Tibet", The Himalayan Journal, 3
  9. ↑ Chevalier, Marie-Luce; Pan, Jiawei; Li, Haibing; Sun, Zhiming; Liu, Dongliang; Pei, Junling; Xu, Wei; Wu, Chan (2017). "First tectonic-geomorphology study along the Longmu–Gozha Co fault system, Western Tibet". Gondwana Research. 41: 411–424. doi:10.1016/j.gr.2015.03.008. ISSN   1342-937X.
  10. ↑ Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak (1890), p. 256.
  11. ↑ Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak (1890), p. 496.
  12. ↑ Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak (1890), p. 647.
  13. ↑ Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak (1890), p. 334.
  14. ↑ Drew, The Jummoo and Kashmir Territories (1875) , pp. 329–330: "Still the vegetation, scarce though it be, is enough to help on the traveller, and even to support the following of one or two families of tent-dwellers who pass a portion of the year in Changchenmo."
  15. ↑ Drew, The Jummoo and Kashmir Territories (1875), p. 329.
  16. ↑ Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak (1890), pp. 255–256.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 Ward, A. E. (1896). The Tourist's And--sportsman's Guide to Kashmir and Ladak, &c. Thacker, Spink. pp. 106–107. Joining the left bank of the river opposite to Kyam are the Silung Yokma, Silung Burma and Silung Kongma. ... cross the Changchenmo valley journey up the Kiepsang stream ... The traders have now almost entirely given up the Changchenmo-Shahidula route to Yarkand.
  18. ↑ Macintyre, Donald (1993). Hindu-Koh: Wanderings and Wild Sport on and Beyond the Himalayas. Asian Educational Services. pp. 306–. ISBN   978-81-206-0851-1. the Changchenmo river--a tributary of the Shyok ... proceed up another long glen north of Changchenmo named Kugrang
  19. ↑ Darrah, Henry Zouch (1898). Sport in the Highlands of Kashmir: Being a Narrative of an Eight Months' Trip in Baltistan and Ladak, and a Lady's Experiences in the Latter Country; Together with Hints for the Guidance of Sportsmen. R. Ward, limited. p. 297. Rimdi river ... reached the point where the Rimdi flows into the Changchenmo river
  20. ↑ Prabal Sarkar; Jigmet Takpa; Riyaz Ahmed; Sandeep Kumar Tiwari; Anand Pendharkar; Saleem-ul-Haq; Javaid Miandad; Ashwini Upadhyay.; Rahul Kaul (7 July 2008). "Mountain Migrants - Survey of Tibetan Antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) and Wild Yak (Bos grunniens) in Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, India" (PDF). snowleopardnetwork.org. Wildlife Trust of India. p. 21. Retrieved 9 January 2020. Map of Chang Chenmo Valley
  21. ↑ If India loses grip on Kailash Range, PLA will make sure we never get it back, The Print, 12 November 2020.
  22. ↑ India, China ramp up infra on north bank of Pangong Tso lake, The Hindu, 3 July 2023.
  23. ↑ Karakoram: Pangong Range, Britannica, accessed 13 October 2023.
  24. 1 2 Kohli, Harish (2000). Across the Frozen Himalaya: The Epic Winter Ski Traverse from Karakoram to Lipu Lekh. Indus Publishing. pp. 86–87. ISBN   978-81-7387-106-1. the five difficult passes through the Karakorams posed a barrier ... Cayley reconnoitred a route that went through the Changchenmo ranges ... if anything these new passes were higher than the ones they replaced, and the land in between them was also higher. ... The route had another advantage in that trade from British India could flow through Kulu via Changchenmo to Yarkand, completely bypassing the customs officials of the Maharaja at Leh.
  25. ↑ Kaul, Hriday Nath (2003). India China Boundary in Kashmir. Gyan Publishing House. p. 111. ISBN   978-81-212-0826-0. Ranbir Singh having, at British request, built the road, "serais" and small store houses for grain.
  26. 1 2 Accounts and Papers. East India. Vol. XLIX. House of Commons, British Parliament. 1874. pp. 23–33. (p26) The Changchenmo line ... The extra distance and the sojourn for 5 days longer in such a desolate tract (p33) Every endeavour has been made to improve the Changchenmo route--serais having been built at some places, and depots of grain established as far as Gogra
  27. ↑ Hayward, G. W. (1870). "Journey from Leh to Yarkand and Kashgar, and Exploration of the Sources of the Yarkand River". Journal of the Royal Geographical Society of London. 40: 37. doi:10.2307/1798640. ISSN   0266-6235. Chang Chenmo is now well known, being visited every year by at least half-a-dozen officers on long leave to Kashmir. The game to be found...
  28. ↑ H.I.N. (1902). "Sport in the Changchenmo Valley, Ladakh". The Navy and Army Illustrated . Vol. 15. London: Hudson & Kearns. p. iv.
  29. 1 2 Far Eastern Economic Review. 1963. p. 446. October 19 a party from a permanent Indian post at Tsogstsalu, 60 or 65 miles west of the border claimed by India north of Lake Pangong, set up a temporary camp at Hot Spring, some fifteen miles further east. Three men of this party, who had made a reconnaissance eastward towards a pass called Kongka La, failed to return. A patrol of about twenty therefore departed on the morning of the 21st in search of them, dividing into two groups. According to the Indian account these groups were groups were suddenly attacked with automatic and mortar fire, one from a Chinese force entrenched on a nearby hill and the other from a force on the south bank of the Chang Chenmo river.
  30. ↑ Jindal, Akash (November–December 2018). "The Story of Hot Springs" (PDF). Indian Police Journal. No. Special Issue on Police Martyrdom. pp. 20–33. ISSN   0537-2429 . Retrieved 4 January 2020. p. 22: Karam Singh of ITBF was assigned the task of establishing outposts near the Chinese Occupation Line ... "Hot Springs" was barely three Km far from the site where Chinese Army had intruded.
  31. ↑ Anubhuti Vishnoi (3 August 2023). "Over 20 strategic roads close to LAC have the ear and deadline". The Economic Times.
  32. ↑ Paving Way for Border Security: India to Soon Build New Strategic Highway Close to LAC in Ladakh, News18, 13 October 2023.
  33. 1 2 Mayank Singh (2 July 2023). "India boosts road links to LAC standoff points". Indian Express.
  34. 1 2 "Marsimik La Pass". Ladakhdekho.com. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  35. ↑ Sanjay Dutta; Rajat Pandit (26 May 2023). "Forbidden zones in Ladakh to soon welcome tourists". Times of India.

Bibliography

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Chang Chenmo River
Traditional Chinese 羌臣摩河
Simplified Chinese 羌臣摩河