Padum

Padum Padam
Town
View of Padum town from the southwest
Padum Location in Ladakh, India
Coordinates: 33°27′50″N 76°52′43″E
Country	India
Union Territory	Ladakh
District	Kargil
Tehsil	Zanskar
Government
• Type	Autonomous Hill Development Council
• Body	LAHDC, Kargil
Elevation	3,669 m (12,037 ft)
Population  (2011)
• Total	1,550
Languages
• Official	Ladakhi, Hindi, Tibetan
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
Vehicle registration	LA 01 XXXX
Website	http://www.kargil.nic.in/

Padum (also known as Padam) is the main town and the administrative centre of the Zanskar tehsil in Kargil district, Ladakh, India. Named after the Buddhist guru Padmasambhava, it was historically one of the two main capitals of the Zanskar Kingdom, the other being Zangla. It is 235 km (146 mi) via the link road from Kargil city (National Highway No. 1D). The new Nimmu–Padum–Darcha road (under construction) connects Padum directly to Leh in the east and to Darcha in Himachal Pradesh.

Description

The present population of Padum town is about 2,000 people. The traditional heart of the village is below the gompa and Palace khar (now in ruins) where two large chortens stand above old buildings. A road was constructed in 1980 from NH1 at Kargil over Pensi La, which is 235 km away. The 145 km road to Darcha passing through Shinkula pass is now operational, connecting to the Manali-Leh Highway. Padum has several hotels, homestays and restaurants for tourists. Padum has a post office, internet cafes and telephone booths.

Geography

Padum is at the centre of the tri-armed Zanskar valley. It has an average elevation of 3,669 m (12,037 ft). There are several villages to the north-east of Padum leading to Karsha monastery.

People

Jama Masjid, Padum

Padum is largely inhabited by people of Tibetan descent who follow Tibetan Buddhism, but there is a sizable Muslim population (accounting for ~40% of the town's population and growing steadily), mainly Balti, who have been present in Padum since the 17th century.

Town

Padum from Pibiting village in the north

Padum market, Padum-Darcha road

Looking south to Padum and Pibiting from Karsha Monastery

The sub-divisional capital Padum is a town of the Zanskar sub-division or tehsil in the Kargil district of Ladakh state, India. The Zanskar River flows through the valley from its source at the Drang Drung glacier of the Pensi La. The Zanskar River joins the Lungnak River near Pibiting village.

A number of notable Buddhist monasteries are located near Padum, including Bardan Monastery and Karsha Monastery and the newly built Dalai Lama Photang. The Phugtal Monastery is accessible from here. It is a day's trek from Dorzang, the end of the road leading from Padum.

Access

A bus operates between 1 June and 30 September, after which the Manali–Leh (NH21) highway is normally closed. Other roads, including the highway from Leh to Srinagar via Kargil, remain open until the end of October.

The Nimmu–Padum–Darcha road is under construction. The road to Darcha via Purne is open as of spring 2024, and half its length is now 2-lane tarmac, with the remainder unpaved.

Jio Has started providing its 4G connectivity from 2020, and now Padum is also connected to 4G network.

Airtel has also started providing its mobile services in Padum in 2023.

See also

• India-China Border Roads
• Line of Actual Control
• List of disputed territories of India

Bibliography

• Janet Rizvi. (1996). Ladakh: Crossroads of High Asia. Second Edition. Oxford University Press, Delhi. ISBN 0-19-564546-4.
• Osada et al. (2000). Mapping the Tibetan World. Yukiyasu Osada, Gavin Allwright, and Atsushi Kanamaru. Reprint: 2004. Kotan Publishing, Tokyo. ISBN 0-9701716-0-9.
• Schettler, Margaret & Rolf (1981). Kashmir, Ladakh & Zanskar. Lonely Planet Publications. South Yarra, Victoria, Australia. ISBN 0-908086-21-0.

External links

• Photos of Padum
• Images taken at the Karsha Monastery, near Padum Archived 2 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine