Hardas is a village in Kargil district of the

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 ...

n union territory of

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 ...

, close to the India–Pakistan border (LOC). The village is located 10 kilometres north of

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 ...

, the district headquarters, on the left of the Dras River.

Geography

Hardas is on the left bank of the Dras River, shortly before its confluence with the Suru River. The village is laid out on a large alluvial plain formed by a mountain stream. The villagers had built a three-mile long aqueduct to channel the water from the steam to water the farms and gardens of the village, which was described with much admiration by

Alexander Cunningham Major General Sir Alexander Cunningham (23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893) was a British Army engineer with the Bengal Engineer Group who later took an interest in the history and archaeology of India. In 1861, he was appointed to the newly ...

. Closer to the confluence of Dras and Suru is the hamlet of Kharal, on a small alluvial plain inside the wide bend of the Dras River as it joins the Suru. During the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

period, there was a rest house at Kharal. There was also a bridge over the Dras River, called "Kharol bridge", which was a necessary part of the route from Kargil to Skardu as well as Kargil to Drass (and Kashmir beyond it). The present

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It is used for major roads, but also includes other public roads and public tracks. In some areas of the United States, it is used as an equivalent term to controlled-access ...

between Srinagar and Kargil runs on the right bank of the Dras River. The road to Skardu continues to exist but breaks at the

Line of Control The Line of Control (LoC) is a military control line between the Indian and Pakistanicontrolled parts of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir—a line which does not constitute a legally recognized international boundary, but serve ...

just before the Gangam village of Baltistan.

Demographics

According to the

2011 census of India The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...

, Hardas has 233 households. The literacy rate of Hardas was 76.24%. In Hardas, Male literacy stands at 87.86% while the female literacy rate was 64.25%.

Transport

Hardas is well-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. The nearest major railway stations to Hardas is the

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 223 kilometres. The nearest airport is at

located at a distance of 18 kilometres but it is currently not operational. The next nearest major airports are Srinagar International Airport and

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 219 kilometres and 225 kilometres.

Maps

File:Txu-pclmaps-oclc-181831961-kargil-52-b-1928.jpg,

SoI ''Soi'' ( th, ซอย ) is the term used in Thailand for a side-street branching off a major street (''thanon'', th, ถนน). An alley is called a ''trok'' ( th, ตรอก). Overview Sois are usually numbered, and are referred to by th ...

map, 1928 File:Txu-pclmaps-oclc-181831961-kargil-52-b-1928.jpg,

map, 1946, showing the 1948 LoC File:Map India and Pakistan 1-250,000 Tile NI 43-7 Kargil.jpg, Map showing "Kharal (Hardus)" (

AMS AMS or Ams may refer to: Organizations Companies * Alenia Marconi Systems * American Management Systems * AMS (Advanced Music Systems) * ams AG, semiconductor manufacturer * AMS Pictures * Auxiliary Medical Services Educational institutions * A ...

Geography

Demographics

Transport

Maps

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography