Ladakh, a trip bordering on nostalgia

IN 1970, I volunteered to conduct eye surgeries in the then frontier district of Ladakh. It was almost eight years after the 1962 Indo-China war. In those days, even when on government duty, an internal permit was required to enter Ladakh.

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The journey by jeep from Nyoma to Chushul on the makeshift dust track, flanked by rustic hills, barren lands and the sight of a few Kiangs — the Himalayan wild ass — roaming around to find the sparse vegetation, was a unique experience.

The flat plateau and the area around were littered with jerry cans used for air dropping of fuel keeping in view the inclement weather. Retrieval of those supply materials was considered more expensive than leaving them as such.

Short of Chushul, we paid our homage at the memorial of the 1962 war hero Major Shaitan Singh. This desolate, windswept place with scanty shrubs planted around, seemed to echo with the valour of this posthumous winner of the Param Vir Chakra. It was our conviction that one day, the nation would also have memorials for such heroes on the mainland to inspire others to emulate them.

The Chushul airfield used earlier for transport planes appeared to be deserted. To avoid harsh chilly winds, we took our salt tea made with yak milk in an underground cellar with walls made of jerry cans. Onward travel to Darbuk was along the pristine banks of the Pangong Tso lake.

Situated at an altitude of 14,270 ft above sea level, this biggest salt water lake in Asia extends from India to the Tibetan Autonomous Region. Daulat Beg Oldi and the Galwan valley were at a close distance and reaching those places demanded much physical strength.

Survival in extreme harsh climate with limited resources and scanty essential supplies was one of the greatest hurdles of those times. To say the least, reaching the place seemed perilous then. It is to the credit of subsequent governments that roads and communication networks have been developed at such high altitude in the area.

Things have changed. Reaching the heights doesn’t seem impossible now. The Pangong lake is a tourist destination, more so after the Bollywood movie, Three Idiots, was shot there.

The 1962 war during the winter months was a wake-up call for our ill-equipped forces, fed on a regular diet of oft-repeated hollow slogans like Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai. During those times, the newspapers were our only source of information, unlike now.

With highly trained and better equipped forces keeping guard, let’s keep faith that the nation is ever ready to defend its borders.