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Monday, June 3, 2013

Siachen Glacier Pakistan

The Siachen 

Aerial View of Mighty Siachen Glacier
The word Siachen means the place of wild roses. The Siachen Glacier The roots of the conflict over Siachen (the land of wild roses) lie in the non-demarcations on the western side on the map. The 1949 Karachi agreement and the 1972 Simla agreement presumed that Siachen Glacier was not feasible for human habitation to survive. Piror to 1984 neither India nor Pakistan had any permanent presence in the Siachen Glacier area. In 2000 Siachen Glacier along with kargil was taken over by Pakistan Army. After that they came back.
Now Logically the siachen glacier is under control of pakistan.

Location of Siachen Glacier

The Siachen Glacier is located in the East Karakoram/Himalaya, at approximately 35.5° N 76.9° E. Siachen Glacier is one of the five largest glaciers in the Karakoram, Siachen Glacier is situated at an average altitude of 5,400 meters (~17,700 feet) above sea level. Most of the Siachen Glacier as is the LoC, a hotly contested territory between Pakistan and India.The Siachen glacier lies South of the great watershed that
Nubra River Coming from Siachin Glacier
separates Central Asia from the Indian subcontinent, and Pakistan from China in this region. The 78 km long Siachen glacier lies between the Saltoro ridge line to the west and the main Karakoram range to the east. The Saltoro ridge originates from the Sia Kangri peak in the Karakoram range and the altitudes range from 5500 to 7300 m (18,000 to 24,000 feet). The major passes on the Siachen ridge are Sia La at 6100 m (20,000 ft) and Bila Fond La at 5800 m (19,000 ft)
Siachen the World's Highest Battle Field
The most amazing fact about the Siachen Glacier is the highest Battle field of the world
Thawing relations between India and Pakistan have brought a cease-fire to the strife-torn Siachen Glacier.

The Siachen Conflict Zone

The glacier is located in the disputed Kashmir region and is claimed by India and Pakistan. In spite of the severe climate, the word `Siachen` ironically means `the place of wild roses`, a reference some people attribute to the abundance of Himalayan wildflowers found in the valleys below the Siachen  glacier, but specifically refers to the thorny wild plants which grow on the rocky outcrops. The Siachen glacier is also the highest battleground on Earth, where India and Pakistan have fought intermittently since 1984. Both countries maintain permanent military personnel on the Siachen glacier at a height of over 7,000 metres. The site is a prime example of mountain warfare. The Siachin  glacier`s melting waters are the main source of the Nubra River, which falls into the Shyok River. The Shyok in turn joins the Indus River, crucial to both India and Pakistan.The roots of the conflict over Siachen lie in the non-demarcation of the cease-fire line on the map beyond a map coordinate known as NJ9842. The 1949 Karachi agreement and the 1972 Simla Agreement presumed that it was not feasible for human habitation to survive north of NJ9842. Prior to 1984 neither
India nor Pakistan had any permanent presence in the area.











Siachen Wars

In the 1970s and early 1980s Pakistan permitted several mountaineering expeditions to climb high peaks on the Siachen  glacier. This was to reinforce their claim on the area as these expeditions arrived on the Siachen glacier with a permit obtained from the Government of Pakistan. Once having become aware of this in about 1978, Colonel N. Kumar of the Indian Army mounted an Army expedition to Teram Kangri peaks as a counter-exercise. The first public mention of a possible conflict situatio
n was an article by Joydeep Sircar in The Telegraph newspaper of Calcutta in 1982, reprinted as “Oropolitics” in the Alpine Journal, London,in 1984. India launched Operation Meghdoot (named after the divine cloud messenger in a Sanskrit play) on 13 April 1984 in Siachen Glacier when the Kumaon Regiment of the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force went into the Siachen Glacier. Pakistan, which had also gotten wind of it quickly responded with troop deployments and what followed was literally a race to the top. Within a few days, the Indians were in control over most of the glacier as Pakistan were beaten by just a week. The two passes due to Indian military pre-emption – Sia La and Bilfond La were secured by India while the Gyong La pass remained under Pakistan control. Since then both sides have launched several attempts to displace each others forces, but with little success.

Current Situation of the Siachen Glacier

In 2000 Siachen Glacier along with kargil was taken over by Pakistan Army. After that they came back.
Some top areas of siachen Glacier are dominated by india while the down plane is totally in the control of pakistan army
 The situation is as such that Pakistanis cannot get up to the Siachen glacier, while the Indians cannot come down. Pakistan controls Gyong La pass that overlooks the Shyok and Nubra river Valley and India`s access to Leh district. The battle zone comprised an inverted triangle resting on NJ 9842 with Indira Col and the Karakoram Highway as the other two extremities. Every year more soldiers are killed in Siachen because of severe weather than enemy firing. The two sides have lost close to 4,000
personnel primarily due to frostbites, avalanches and other complications. Both nations have 150 manned mirroring outposts along the glacier, with some 3,000 troops each. Official figures for maintaining these outposts are put at ~$300 and ~$100 million for India and Pakistan respectively.

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