The Kharmang Valley (), also known as Kartaksho, is one of the five main valleys situated in

Gilgit–Baltistan Gilgit-Baltistan (; ), formerly known as the Northern Areas, is a region administered by Pakistan as an administrative territory, and constituting the northern portion of the larger Kashmir region which has been the subject of a dispute be ...

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 ...

. The area became an individual district in 2015, with its temporary headquarters set at the town of Tolti. The valley is located approximately from the city of

Skardu , nickname = , motto = , image_skyline = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Gilgit Baltistan#Pakistan , pushpin_label_position ...

. Tourist destinations in the area include

Manthokha Waterfall Manthokha Waterfall ( Balti:منٹھق چھوپھیار) is a waterfall located in Kharmang Valley, Skardu, Gilgit-Baltistan, the extreme northern region of Pakistan. This waterfall is approx 180 feet high from ground, and located almost away fro ...

Khamosh Waterfall ''Khamosh'' () is 1985 Indian Hindi-language thriller film directed and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The film starred Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi, Amol Palekar, Soni Razdan and Pankaj Kapoor. The film became notable for actors Palekar, ...

Mehdiabad Valley and Kharmang khas valley. Kharmang is where 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, ...

enters Pakistani-controlled territory from 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 ...

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

-controlled territory.

Etymology

''Kahrmang'' is a Balti word that consists of two parts (''khar'' means "fort" and ''mang'' means "abundant"). The name ''Kharmang'' was given to the valley in the era of

Ali Sher Khan Anchan Ali Sher Khan Anchan ( Balti: علی شیر خان انچن) (also called Ali Rai, Ray Alī, Alī Rai, Raja Sher Ali Mir, Mir Ali, Sher Ali and Ali Zad; 1590–1625) was a famous Balti king. He was a Maqpon dynasty king who unified Baltistan an ...

, who built many forts in this region because of its strategic importance.

Geography

According to the ''Gazetteer of Kashmir and Ladak'' (1890), Kharmang is an old ''ilaqa'' of

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 ...

that consists of the right bank of

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, ...

from the border 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 ...

to the village of Pari, and from the source of the

Shingo River The Shingo River is a tributary of the Indus River, and flows through Gilgit-Baltistan and Kargil regions. In the Kashmiri terminology, the Shingo river joins the Dras River, which in turns joins the Suru River. In the Balti terminology, ...

to the village of Tolti on the left bank of Indus.

Demographics

Kharmang valley is a populated area. The approximate population is about 20,000 households (approximately 60,000 people); most of the population resides in scattered villages. The main source of income is subsistence livestock rearing for their livelihood and agriculture and unskilled man power working abroad and urban centers of Pakistan. Many Kharmang people work in Gulf countries with a majority in

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

and

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

. Natives of Kharmang Valley speak Balti ,

hina Hina may refer to: People and deities * Hina (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Hina (chiefess), a name given to several noble ladies who lived in ancient Hawaii * Hina (goddess), the name assigned to ...

and predominantly follow

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 ...

, with the exception of a few people who belong to

Noorbakhshi Noorbakhshia is a school of Islamic jurisprudence that emphasizes the Muslim Unity. Its very foundations rests on the belief in Allah, Angels, Prophets, Day of Judgement, the Quran and other Islamic Scriptures revealed upon previous Prophets. W ...

who live around Mehdi Abad.

References

{{Reflist Populated places in Kharmang District Baltistan Valleys of Gilgit-Baltistan

Etymology

Geography

Demographics

See also

References