Lipulekh is a Himalayan pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 connecting the Kumaon

Kumaon Division

For Kumaoni/Kumauni People see Kumauni PeopleKumaon or Kumaun is one of the two regions and administrative divisions of Uttarakhand, a mountainous state of northern India, the other being Garhwal. It includes the districts of Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh, and Udham Singh Nagar...

 region of Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship...

 in the Pithoragarh district

Pithoragarh District

Pithoragarh district is the easternmost Himalayan district in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is naturally landscaped with high Himalayan mountains, snow capped peaks, passes, valleys, alpine meadows, forests, waterfalls, perennial rivers, glaciers and springs. The flora and fauna of this area...

 in India with the old Tibetan trading town of Taklakot (Purang) in China. It has been used since ancient times by traders, mendicants and pilgrims transiting between India and Tibet. This is used by Manasarovar pilgrims. Presently, it is a border post manned by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police

Indo-Tibetan Border Police

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police is an Indian force conceived on October 24, 1962 for security along the India's border with the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, border covering 2115  kilometres...

.

This pass links the Vyas (locally called "Byans") and Chaudans valleys of India with the Tibet Autonomous Region

Tibet Autonomous Region

The Tibet Autonomous Region , Tibet or Xizang for short, also called the Xizang Autonomous Region is a province-level autonomous region of the People's Republic of China , created in 1965....

 of People's Republic of China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

, and forms the last territorial point in Indian territory. The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, a Hindu pilgrimage to Mount Kailash

Mount Kailash

Mount Kailash is a peak in the Gangdisê Mountains, which are part of the Himalayas in Tibet...

 and Lake Mansarovar, traverses this pass. Lipulekh pass is connected to Chang Lobochahela, near the old trading town of Purang

Burang Town

Burang, known as Purang in Tibetan, is the main town in Burang County in Ngari Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It is situated to the south of Mount Kailash, near the borders with India and Nepal. The town lies at an altitude of 4755 metres...

 (Taklakot), on the Chinese

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 side.

The pass is first Indian border post to be opened for trade with China in 1992. This was followed by the opening of Shipkila

Shipkila

Shipkila is a mountain pass and border post on the India-China border. It is through this pass which the river Sutlej enters India ....

, Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...

 in 1994 and Nathula, Sikkim

Sikkim

Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayan mountains...

 in 2006. Presently, Lipulekh is open for cross-border trade every year from June through September.

The items cleared for export from India include gur

Jaggery

Jaggery is a traditional unrefined non-centrifugal whole cane sugar consumed in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. It is a concentrated product of cane juice without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can vary from golden brown to dark brown in color...

, misri, tobacco, spices, pulse

Pulse (legume)

A pulse is an annual leguminous crop yielding from one to twelve seeds of variable size, shape, and color within a pod. Pulses are used for food and animal feed. The term "pulse", as used by the Food and Agricultural Organization , is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry seed...

, fafar flour, coffee, vegetable oil, ghee

Ghee

Ghee is a class of clarified butter that originated in South Asia and is commonly used in South Asian cuisine....

 and various miscellaneous consumable items, whereas the main imports include sheep wool, passam, sheep, goats, borax

Borax

Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...

, yak tails, chhirbi (butter) and raw silk.