, other_name = Indira Col West, Main Indira Col , photo = , photo_caption = , elevation_m = 5764 , elevation_ref = , traversed = , location = On the border between Chinese-controlled

Trans-Karakoram Tract The Trans-Karakoram Tract (), also known as the Shaksgam Tract ( ur, , translit=Shaksgām), is an area of approximately north of the Karakoram watershed, including the Shaksgam valley. The tract is administered by China as part of its Taxkorga ...

and Indian-controlled

Siachen Glacier The Siachen Glacier is a glacier located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayas at about , just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends. At long, it is the longest glacier in the Kara ...

.India is in ''de facto'' control of this region of Kashmir; the Indian claim is disputed by

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

. See e.g.
The Future of Kashmir
' on the BBC website. , range = Eastern

Karakoram The Karakoram is a mountain range in Kashmir region spanning the borders of Pakistan, China, and India, with the northwest extremity of the range extending to Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Most of the Karakoram mountain range falls under the ...

Range , map = Karakoram#India Ladakh#India#Gilgit Baltistan#Pakistan#China Xinjiang Southern#China , map_caption = Location of the Indira Col within the greater

region , label_position = top , coordinates = , topo = , embedded = __NOTOC__ Indira Col West ( hi, इंदिरा कोल पश्चिम) is a mountain pass at ) altitude on the Indira Ridge of

Siachen Muztagh __NOTOC__ 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. ...

in Karakoram Range. It is on the border between Indian-controlled

and the Chinese-controlled

(both in the disputed

Kashmir region Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

), close to the

tripoint A tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints as of 2020. Nearly half are situated in rivers, l ...

of India, Pakistan, and China. The India-Pakistan

Actual Ground Position Line The Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) divides current positions of Indian and Pakistani military posts and troops across the entire long front line in the disputed region of Siachen Glacier. AGPL generally runs along the Saltoro Mountains ra ...

(AGPL) in the Siachen area ends near the pass.The fight for Siachen
/ref>
/ref> It is possible to ascend the pass from both the north and south sides controlled by China and India respectively. Indira Col East (Coord ), also ''Main Indira Col'' or just ''Indira Col'' ( zh, 因地拉科), is another

col In geomorphology, a col is the lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 103. . It may also be called a gap. Particularly rugged and forbidding co ...

on Indira Ridge which lies 2.4 km further east of Indira Col West at ) altitude. It is more difficult to ascend or descend on the north side controlled by China, but easier to do so from the south side controlled by India. India Saddle (Coord ), a geographical saddle, connects the Indira Col East and Indira Col West. Indira Ridge separates the Chinese-controlled

, which lies north of Indira Ridge, from the

, which lies south of Indira Ridge. The AGPL end point, Indira Col West, Indira Col East, Indira Saddle, Turkestan La North, and Turkestan La East lie on the Indira Ridge from west to east.

History

Etymology

The ''la'' in

Ladakhi language The Ladakhi language is a Tibetic language spoken in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. It is the predominant language in the Buddhist-dominated district of Leh. Though a member of the Tibetic family, Ladakhi is not mutually intelligible ...

means a mountain pass. The eastern col was named Indira Col in 1912 by Bullock Workman, after one of the names of the goddess

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with '' Maya'' ("Illusion"). A ...

Exploration

In 1889, British raj army officer and explorer Francis Younghusband reached the base of Turkestan La (North) from north side, and he noted that this was a long glacier and a major Central Asian dividing range. Colonel Narendra "Bull" Kumar reached Indira Col (the western col) in 1981.Bull’s glacier
/ref> In 1998

Harish Kapadia Harish Kapadia (born 11 July 1945) is a Himalayan mountaineer, author and long-time editor of the '' Himalayan Journal'' from India. He has been awarded the Patron's Medal of the Royal Geographical Society, the Life Time Achievement Award for ...

reached the same col; on his map and text he refers to it as the "''main Indira Col''" and "''Indira Col West''", whereas he refers to the col 2.4 km to the east as the "''Indira Col East'' ('' Workman'')." Indirakoli Pass（ zh, 因地拉科里山口） name on the Chinese maps refers to coordinates is claimed by Pakistan, which is "Indira Col East". In 1984, Indian soldiers traveled across Siachen glacier, scaled many peaks and passes including the Indira Col as part of the Operation Meghdoot. After that,

and his colleagues also explored various peaks passes, ranges subranges and glaciers in the Siachen area.

Disputed territories

Territories on all sides of Indira Col are

disputed Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin ''controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an opposite d ...

. Area south of the Indira Col West is controlled by India and also claimed by Pakistan. North of Indira Col West is Trans-Karakoram Tract claimed by India but controlled by China under a 1963 border agreement with Pakistan. The AGPL generally runs along the Saltoro Mountains range, beginning from the northernmost point of the ( LOC) at Point

NJ 9842 NJ9842, also called NJ 980420 (in full: NJ 38 98000, 13 42000, yard based Indian Grid Coordinates), is the northernmost demarcated point of the India-Pakistan cease fire line in Kashmir known as the Line of Control (LoC). The India–Pakistan A ...

and ending northwest of ''Indira Col West'' in the north, with peaks in excess of 7,000 meters and average low temperatures around minus 50 Celsius. India gained control of of disputed territory in 1984 because of its military operations in Siachen.

Geography

India-China-Pakistan borders

Indira Col is near the tri-junction of India-China-Pakistan controlled areas.

Indira Ridge's features

Indira Ridge, from west to east, has following features: * '' Sia Kangri'', * ''Indira Col West'' , * ''India Saddle'' , * ''Indira Col East'', * Turkestan La (North) (Younghusband) ( zh, 图尔吉斯坦拉山口, coordinates ) which was identified by the British explorer Younghusband, and * Turkestan La (East) (traditional) (coordinates ) which is an ancient or "traditional" pass.

AGPL end point

* '' AGPL end point'',

India Saddle

Between Indira Col West and Indira Col East is ''India Saddle'' between the

to the south and the Urdok Glacier to the north in the Shaksgam (Trans-Karakoram Tract), on the watershed between 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 Kashmi ...

basin and the

Tarim Basin The Tarim Basin is an endorheic basin in Northwest China occupying an area of about and one of the largest basins in Northwest China.Chen, Yaning, et al. "Regional climate change and its effects on river runoff in the Tarim Basin, China." Hyd ...

. It is too steep to easily descend north from the col to the Urdok Glacier.

Siachen Glacier's topography

The main channel of ''Siachen Glacier'', which flows from north to south into India, begins from the southern slope of Indira Col West. The ''Urdok Glacier'', which flows from south to north into ''Trans-Karakoram Tract'' held by China, begins from the northern slope of Indira Col West, its subbranches ''Urdok I'' glacier flows from north to northwest from the northern slope of ''India Col East'' and ''Urdok II'' glacier flows north to northwest from the northern slope of ''Turkmenistan La North''. ''Straghar Glacier'' runs perpendicular to the Indira Ridge on the eastern side of the ridge (and serves as the LAC between ''Trans-Karakoram Tract'' held by China and '' Daulat Beg Oldi'' (DBO) held by India).

, 1999, Saga of Siachen, The Himalayan Journal, Vol.55.2015
Mass baalance of Siachen glacier
Journal of Glaciology, Vol. 61, No. 229, p.1012. The ''Siachen Glacier'' is explored from the '' Siachen Base Camp'', reachable via

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 ...

- Khalsar-

Sasoma Sasoma is a settlement in Nubra Valley, Ladakh consisting of villages such as the Gya village. A road is being constructed from Sasoma to Saser La by the Border Roads Organisation The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is a road construction ex ...

army camp-Siachen Base camp road, to the ''Station A'' which is the point where main channel of Siachen Glacier meets the ''Teram Shehr Glacier''. From the ''Station A'', the route goes north to Indira Col West.

References

External links

Map at ''Blank on the Map''
{{Ladakh Karakoram Mountain passes of Ladakh Border tripoints India–Pakistan border Mountain passes of India China–India border Mountain passes of China Mountain passes of Xinjiang