Batalik is a town in
Ladakh
Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu and ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, located on the upper reaches of the
Indus river
The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...
. It was a focal point in the
Kargil War
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referr ...
because of its strategic location between
Kargil
Kargil ( lbj, ) is a city and a joint capital of the union territory of Ladakh, India. It is also the headquarters of the Kargil district. It is the second-largest city in Ladakh after Leh. Kargil is located to the east of Srinagar in Ja ...
,
Leh
Leh () ( lbj, ) is the joint capital and largest city of Ladakh, a union territory of India. Leh, located in the Leh district, was also the historical capital of the Kingdom of Ladakh, the seat of which was in the Leh Palace, the former res ...
and
Baltistan
Baltistan ( ur, ; bft, སྦལ་ཏི་སྟཱན, script=Tibt), also known as Baltiyul or Little Tibet ( bft, སྦལ་ཏི་ཡུལ་།, script=Tibt), is a mountainous region in the Pakistani-administered territory of Gilg ...
. In 1999, the
Kargil war
The Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between India and Pakistan from May to July 1999 in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control (LoC). In India, the conflict is also referr ...
was fought in this region.
Batalik is 56 km from Kargil and is known for its five
Brokpa
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 Baltista ...
villages:
Dah,
Hanu
The Hanwoo ( ko, 한우), also Hanu or Korean Native, is a breed of small cattle native to Korea. It was formerly used as a draught animal, but this use has almost disappeared. It is now raised mainly for meat. It is one of four indigenous Korea ...
,
Garkon
Garkon is a Headquartor of a panchayat village in the Aryan valley region located in Kargil block of Kargil district, in a rural region in the Indian union territory of Ladakh.It has six hamlets: Changra, Fantola, Haroo, Rama, Sirchangarh ...
,
Chulichan
Chulichan ( lbj, ) is a village panchayat in the Kargil district of Ladakh, India. It consists of five hamlets: Groung Rkhil,Groung Stod-I,Groung Stod-II,Sharchey and Grongjuk .It is one of the 66 villages of Kargil tehsil. These village i ...
and
Darchik
Darchik is a village in the Aryan valley region, located in Kargil tehsil of Kargil district of Ladakh. The Darchik village includes hamlets named Gund (Barjay), Hordass and Sanachay. It is populated by Buddhist Brokpa people. Darchik is one o ...
.
Most of the valley is made up of nominally
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
Brokpas who practice
animism
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
, but a few communities have converted to
Shia Islam
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, m ...
and intermarried with Muslim ethnic groups as a result.
Transport
Road
Batalik is connected by road to other places in Ladakh and India by the
Srinagar-Leh Highway
National Highway 1 (NH 1) in India runs between the States and territories of India, union territories of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. It comprises parts of old National Highway 1A (India, old numbering ...
or the NH 1.
Rail
The nearest major railway stations to Batalik are
Sopore railway station
Sopore railway station is situated in the outskirts of Sopore town. It lies on Northern Railway Network Zone of Indian Railways. It is one of the northernmost station of Indian Railways.
Location
The station is located at Amargrah about 2 km f ...
and
Srinagar railway station
Srinagar railway station is a railway station of the city of Srinagar in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The station is part of the Jammu–Baramulla line and lies in Firozpur division, which once completed, will connect the c ...
located at a distance of 271 kilometres and 277 kilometres respectively.
Air
The nearest airport is at
Kargil
Kargil ( lbj, ) is a city and a joint capital of the union territory of Ladakh, India. It is also the headquarters of the Kargil district. It is the second-largest city in Ladakh after Leh. Kargil is located to the east of Srinagar in Ja ...
located at a distance of 60 kilometres but it is currently non-operational. The next nearest major airport is
Leh Airport
Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport is a domestic airport serving Leh, the capital of Ladakh, India. It is the 23rd highest commercial airport in the world at above mean sea level. The airport is named after 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche, an Ind ...
located at a distance of 205 kilometres.
See also
Manoj Kumar Pandey
Captain Manoj Kumar Pandey, Param Vir Chakra, PVC (25 June 1975 – 3 July 1999) was an officer of the Indian Army who was posthumously awarded India's highest military honour, the Param Vir Chakra, for his audacious courage and leadership dur ...
(The Hero of Batalik)
References
Cities and towns in Kargil district
Ladakh
Kargil War
{{Ladakh-geo-stub