Nyoma is a principal village of southern

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 ...

in India, the headquarters of an

eponymous An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

subdivision Subdivision may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Subdivision (metre), in music * ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009 * "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2) * ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005 * "Subdivisions" (song), by Rus ...

tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

and

community development block In India, a Community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of Tehsil, administratively earmarked for planning and development. The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several technic ...

in the

Leh district Leh district is a district in the union territory of Ladakh, India. With an area of 45,110 ''km'2'', it is the second largest district in the country smaller only to Kutch. It is bounded on the north by Gilgit-Baltistan's Kharmang and Gha ...

.Leh subdivision-blocks
It is located on the bank of the

Indus 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, ...

river, after its 90-degree bend near Dungti and before the valley narrows to a gorge near Mahe. A Buddhist monastery ("gompa") is located on the hill at the back of the village. The Nyoma tehsil and subdivision cover the entire southern Ladakh, including the

Rupshu Rupshu is a high elevation plateau and valley and an eponymous Community development block in India, community development block in southeast Ladakh. Description Frederic Drew describes the Rupshu valley as follows: Drew states that the valle ...

plains, the Hanle valley and the Indus valley of

Skakjung __NOTOC__ Skakjung or Kokzhung is 45–kilometer long pasture land along the Indus River valley in Southern Ladakh. It is traditionally used by nomads of nearby villages such as Chushul and Nyoma as well as Rupshu. The Skakung pasture land can be ...

Military facilities

Nyoma Airbase

Indian Military The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by th ...

has an operational airbase at Nyoma. In 2022, the airbase received Wildlife Board's forests clearance for expansion in 508 hectares land inside

Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary The Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary (or the Changthang Cold Desert Wildlife Sanctuary) is a high altitude wildlife sanctuary located in the Ladakhi adjunct of the Changthang plateau in the Leh District of the union territory of Ladakh. It is import ...

Field Firing Range

Nearby Mahe has Indian Military's "Mahe Field Firing Range" (MFFR) on 1259.25 hectares land inside the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary. Firing range is 40 to 50 km from the

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 ...

India-China

Line of Actual Control The Line of Actual Control (LAC), in the context of the Sino-Indian border dispute, is a notional demarcation lineAnanth KrishnanLine of Actual Control , India-China: the line of actual contest, 13 June 2020: "In contrast, the alignment o ...

. This is the one of its type firing range in the entire Indian-held Ladakh region where all types of weapons can be fired.

Fiber optical cable for internet & telephony

In 2022, wildlife clearance was also granted for laying optical fiber cables in the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary and

Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary The Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary, also known as the Karakoram (Nubra Shyok) Wildlife Sanctuary or the Karakoram (Saichen Shyok) Wildlife Sanctuary is a high altitude wildlife sanctuary located in the easternmost reaches of the Karakoram range in ...

for the internet and telephony connectivity.

Location and geography

The Indus river after its entry into Ladakh flows in a southwesterly direction through a wide valley. Afterwards, it takes a 90-degree bend at Dungti blocked by the higher ground of the Chushul valley. The village of Nyoma lies 33 km west of the bend on the right bank (northern bank), where it is also coupled with another neighbouring village Mood (or ''Mud'' or ''Mad''). The Indus river here is said to be wide and shallow. It could be easily forded. Nyoma is located 41 km southeast of

Chumathang Chumathang is a village in Leh District, Ladakh in northern India on the banks of the Indus river. chumathang village is among the first villages in the changthang region to have its own power station and government high school which was only p ...

, and 87 km south of

Chushul Chushul is a village in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is located in the Durbuk tehsil, in the area known as "Chushul Valley", south of the Pangong Lake and west of the Spanggur Lake. The Line of Actual Control with China runs about 5 m ...

. Nearby villages are Mahe and Loma. Hanle, the largest village in southern Ladakh, is 80 km to the southeast. Mount Sajum on the border with China is 43 km to the east.

Border infrastructure

The Nyoma tehsil borders the

Tibet Autonomous Region The Tibet Autonomous Region or Xizang Autonomous Region, often shortened to Tibet or Xizang, is a Provinces of China, province-level Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China in Southwest China. I ...

of China on the south and the east. The southern border runs along the

Chumar Chumar or Chumur () is a village and the centre of nomadic grazing region located in south-eastern Ladakh, India. It is in Rupshu block, south of the Tso Moriri lake, on the bank of the Parang River (or ''Pare Chu''), close to Ladakh's border wit ...

village in Rupshu and the Imis Pass at the end of the Hanle valley. The eastern border, a

resulting from the

1962 war The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...

with China, runs along the

Kailash Range Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It has an altitude of ...

watershed of the Indus river till the village of

Dumchele Dumchele or Dhumtsele (, ) is a village and a grazing, grazing area near the Line of Actual Control between Ladakh and Tibet, administered by China since October 1962 but claimed by India. The locale is in the disputed Demchok sector, about 50 kil ...

and narrows to the right bank of the Indus river up to Demchok. The border in the

Demchok sector The Demchok sector is a disputed area named after the villages of Demchok in Ladakh and Demchok in Tibet, situated near the confluence of the Charding Nullah and Indus River. It is a part of the greater Sino-Indian border dispute between ...

remains disputed. Nyoma is home to an

Advanced Landing Ground Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) were temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II during the liberation of Europe. They were built in the UK prior to the invasion and thereafter in northwest Europe from 6 June 19 ...

of Indian Airforce, which was first built in 1962. It was reactivated in 2009 when an

An-32 The Antonov An-32 (NATO reporting name: Cline) is a turboprop twin-engined military transport aircraft. Design and development The An-32 is essentially a re-engined An-26. It is designed to withstand adverse weather conditions better than the s ...

landed in this airfield.New IAF airfield to be reopened in east Ladakh
The Economic Times, 6 April 2009. The road from

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 ...

runs till the village of

Koyul Koyul is a village in the Leh district of Ladakh, India. It is located in the Nyoma tehsil, on the banks of the Koyul Lungpa river just before it joins the Indus River. Geography The village of Koyul is in the Koyul Lungpa valley, which hous ...

, crossing the Indus river at Loma. From Koyul to Demchok, there is only a rough track. An alternative border road runs between the Koyul Lungpa valley and Demchok via the Umling La pass. Roads infrastructure this area is being enhanced under the India-China Border Roads projects.

Tourism

Since 2010, foreign tourists with

Inner Line Permit Inner Line Permit (ILP) is an official travel document issued by the concerned state government to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected area for a limited period. It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those state ...

s are permitted to visit Nyoma and its monastery.

Civil administration

Nyoma subdivision

The permanent civilian habitations under the administration of the Nyoma

Community Development Block In India, a Community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of Tehsil, administratively earmarked for planning and development. The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several technic ...

( district subdivision) include villages like Nayoma, Hanle, Koyul, Demchok, Tsaga, Mudh, Rongo, Nyedar, etc.Successive govts have neglected border areas of Ladakh: Nyoma's BDC chair
Economic Times, 24 June 2020.

Nyoma village

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 ...

, Nyoma has 202 households. The effective literacy rate (i.e. the literacy rate of population excluding children aged 6 and below) is 49.94%.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

{{Use dmy dates, date=April 2020 Villages in Nyoma tehsil Indian Air Force bases