Dras
Encyclopedia
Dras is a town in the Kargil District
of Jammu and Kashmir
, India
. It is often called 'The Gateway to Ladakh
'. The town shot into prominence in the summer of 1999 following Pakistani-backed incursions into Jammu and Kashmir
. The Kargil War
saw the town being shelled by infiltrators and the war ended with the Indian Army
recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the Kargil district.
Dras (Hindi: दरस) is a town in the Kargil District of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is often called 'The Gateway to Ladakh'.[1] , In the local dialect “Baltic” Dras means “Hell”. It is at a height of 3230 m or 10990 ft. The mountain ridges however range from 16000 feet to 21000 feet. It has become famous as the second coldest inhabited place in the world by virtue of the intense cold that descends upon the valley along with repeated snowfalls during winters. Winter temperature is sometimes known to plummet to less than minus 60 degrees.
The Drass valley starts from the base of the Zojila pass, the Himalayan gateway to Ladakh. For centuries its inhabitants are known to have negotiated this formidable pass even during the most risky period in the late autumn or early spring, when the whole sector remains snow-bound and is subject to frequent snow storms, to transport trader's merchandise across and to help stranded travellers to traverse it. By virtue of their mastery over the pass they had established a monopoly over the carrying trade during the heydays of the Pan-Asian trade. A hardly people enduring with fortitude and harshness of the valley's winter, the inhabitants of Drass can well be described as the guardian's of Ladakh's gateway.
The town shot into prominence in the summer of 1999 following Pakistani-backed intrusions into Ladakh region. The Kargil War saw the town being shelled by infiltrators and the war ended with the Indian Army recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the Kargil district after
Dras is located at 34.45°N 75.77°E. It has an average elevation of 3,280 metres (10,764 feet). It is 56 km from Kargil town
on the road to Srinagar
lying in the centre of the valley of the same name.
, Indo-Aryan
people believed to have originally migrated to Ladakh from Central Asia. They speak Shina
, a Dardic language. The small town has a Muslim majority and a few Buddhists. The local population is of 64% male and 36% female. In total the population of Dras is 1,201
The Dras valley starts from the base of the Zojila pass, the Himalayan gateway to Ladakh. For centuries, its inhabitants have been known to have negotiated this formidable pass even during the riskiest period (in late autumn or early spring, when the whole sector remains snow-bound and is subject to frequent snow storms) to transport trading merchandise and to help stranded travellers traverse the pass. They thereby established a monopoly over porterage during the heyday of the pan-Asian trade. A hardy people enduring with fortitude the harshness of the valley's winter, the inhabitants of Dras can well be described as the guardians of Ladakh's gateway.
Kargil District
Kargil is a district of Ladakh, Kashmir, India. Kargil lies near the Line of Control facing Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's Baltistan to the west, and Kashmir valley to the south. Zanskar is part of Kargil district along with Suru, Wakha and Dras valleys...
of Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It is often called 'The Gateway to Ladakh
Ladakh
Ladakh is a region of Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of the Republic of India. It lies between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and the main Great Himalayas to the south, inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent...
'. The town shot into prominence in the summer of 1999 following Pakistani-backed incursions into Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
. The Kargil War
Kargil War
The Kargil War ,, also known as the Kargil conflict, was an armed conflict between India and Pakistan that took place between May and July 1999 in the Kargil district of Kashmir and elsewhere along the Line of Control...
saw the town being shelled by infiltrators and the war ended with the Indian Army
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the Kargil district.
History
The Drass valley starts from the base of the Zojila pass, the Himalayan gateway to Ladakh. For centuries its inhabitants are known to have negotiated this formidable pass even during the most risky period in the late autumn or early spring, when the whole sector remains snow-bound and is subject to frequent snow storms, to transport trader's merchandise across and to help stranded travellers to traverse it. By virtue of their mastery over the pass they had established a monopoly over the carrying trade during the heydays of the Pan-Asian trade. A hardly people enduring with fortitude and harshness of the valley's winter, the inhabitants of Drass can well be described as the guardian's of Ladakh's gateway.
The town shot into prominence in the summer of 1999 following Pakistani-backed intrusions into Ladakh region. The Kargil War saw the town being shelled by infiltrators and the war ended with the Indian Army recapturing the areas surrounding the town and the Kargil district after
Geography
Kargil town
Kargil is a town, which serves as the headquarters of Kargil District of Ladakh in the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. It is the second largest town in Ladakh after Leh...
on the road to Srinagar
Srinagar
Srinagar is the summer seasonal capital of Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated in Kashmir Valley and lies on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus. It is one of the largest cities in India not to have a Hindu majority. The city is famous for its gardens, lakes and houseboats...
lying in the centre of the valley of the same name.
Trekking base
Dras is a convenient base for a 3-day long trek to the Suru valley across the sub-range separating the two valleys. This trek passes through some of the most beautiful upland villages and flower sprinkled meadows on both sides of the 4500m Umbala pass, which is along the way. The trek to the holy cave of Amarnath (in neighbouring Kashmir) starts from Minamarg below Zojila, takes three days and involves crossing a pass at 5200m. Dras also offers numerous shorter treks and hikes to the upland villages.Climate
Winters are extremely harsh with average lows around -22oC (-10oF), and as low as -45oC at the height of winter, which lasts from mid-October to mid-May. Summers start in June and go on up till early September, with average temperatures near 15oC (60oF) and little precipitation. Annual precipitation is almost entirely concentrated in the months from December to May when Dras gets about 360 mm (14 inches) of snow.Demographics
Inhabitants of Dras, like many of the people of Gilgit, are DardDard people
The Dards are a group of people defined by linguistic similarities, and not common ethnicity, predominantly found in Eastern Afghanistan, in the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir and in the Northern Areas and North West Frontier Province of Pakistan...
, Indo-Aryan
Indo-Aryans
Indo-Aryan is an ethno-linguistic term referring to the wide collection of peoples united as native speakers of the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-Iranian family of Indo-European languages...
people believed to have originally migrated to Ladakh from Central Asia. They speak Shina
Shina language
Shina is a Dardic language spoken by a plurality of people in Gilgit-Baltistan of Pakistan and Dras in Ladakh of Indian-Administered Kashmir. The valleys in which it is spoken include Astore, Chilas, Dareil, Tangeer, Gilgit, Ghizer, and a few parts of Baltistan and Kohistan. It is also spoken in...
, a Dardic language. The small town has a Muslim majority and a few Buddhists. The local population is of 64% male and 36% female. In total the population of Dras is 1,201
The Dras valley starts from the base of the Zojila pass, the Himalayan gateway to Ladakh. For centuries, its inhabitants have been known to have negotiated this formidable pass even during the riskiest period (in late autumn or early spring, when the whole sector remains snow-bound and is subject to frequent snow storms) to transport trading merchandise and to help stranded travellers traverse the pass. They thereby established a monopoly over porterage during the heyday of the pan-Asian trade. A hardy people enduring with fortitude the harshness of the valley's winter, the inhabitants of Dras can well be described as the guardians of Ladakh's gateway.
Places of interest
- Dras War Memorial (also known as Bimbat War Memorial)
- Dropadi Kund - 18 km from Dras
- Sando Top / Sando Base - Pakistani posts are visible from Sando Top, and Tiger Hill is located in front of Sando Top (1 hour from Dras).
- Mushko Valley - very popular for various wild flowers during summer season in the deserted Ladakh region
- Brigade War Gallery - information relating to the 1999 war.