Padum
Encyclopedia
Padum is the largest town and administrative centre of Zanskar
tehsil
of Kargil district
in the state of Jammu and Kashmir
, India
. It is 240 km away from Kargil.
where two large chortens stand above old buildings. A road was constructed in 1980 from Kargil across Pensi La. Padum has several hotels and restaurants meant for tourists. Padum has a post office, internet cafes and telephone booths.
an descent who follow Tibetan Buddhism
, but there is a sizable Muslim
minority (accounting for ~40% of the town's population), mainly Balti, who have been present in Padum since the 17th century. A mosque was built in Padum in recent years to cater the local Muslim population.
region in the state of Ladakh
in Jammu and Kashmir
in northern India
. The Doda River
flows through the valley from its source at the Drang Drung glacier of the Pensi La.
The Zanskar River
is located further downstream past the valley.
A number of notable Buddhist monasteries are located near Padum including Bardan Monastery
and Kursha Monastery
.
The bus details here apply during the tourist season between July 1 and September 15 only, after this period the Manali-Leh highway is formally closed. The other roads including the highway from Leh to Srinagar via Kargil, remain open until the end of October. Despite of heavy blizzard, the road from Leh to Nubra valley over the extremely high Khardung La is kept open throughout the year.
Zanskar
Zanskar is a subdistrict or tehsil of the Kargil district, which lies in the eastern half of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The administrative centre is Padum...
tehsil
Tehsil
A Tehsil or Tahsil/Tahasil , also known as Taluk and Mandal, is an administrative division of some country/countries of South Asia....
of Kargil district
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...
in the state 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 240 km away from Kargil.
Description
The population is about 1,000 people. The traditional heart of the village is below the gompaGompa
Gompa and ling are Buddhist ecclesiastical fortifications of learning, lineage and sadhana , located in Tibet, India, Nepal, and Bhutan...
where two large chortens stand above old buildings. A road was constructed in 1980 from Kargil across Pensi La. Padum has several hotels and restaurants meant for tourists. Padum has a post office, internet cafes and telephone booths.
Geography
Padum is in the centre of Zanskar. It has an average elevation of 3,669 metres (12,037 feet). There are several small villages around Padum.People
Padum is largely inhabited by people of TibetTibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
an descent who follow Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
, but there is a sizable Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
minority (accounting for ~40% of the town's population), mainly Balti, who have been present in Padum since the 17th century. A mosque was built in Padum in recent years to cater the local Muslim population.
Padum valley
The Padum Valley is a valley of the ZanskarZanskar
Zanskar is a subdistrict or tehsil of the Kargil district, which lies in the eastern half of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir. The administrative centre is Padum...
region in the state of 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...
in 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...
in northern 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...
. The Doda River
Doda River
The Doda or Stod is a river of Jammu and Kashmir in northern India. It flows through the state of Ladakh. The source of the river is the Drang Drung glacier of the Pensi La....
flows through the valley from its source at the Drang Drung glacier of the Pensi La.
The Zanskar River
Zanskar River
The Zanskar River is a north-flowing tributary of the Indus. In its upper reaches, the Zanskar has two main branches. First of these, the Doda, has its source near the Pensi-la mountain-pass and flows south-eastwards along the main Zanskar valley leading towards Padum, the capital of Zanskar...
is located further downstream past the valley.
A number of notable Buddhist monasteries are located near Padum including Bardan Monastery
Bardan Monastery
Bardan Monastery or Bardan Gompa is a 17th century Buddhist monastery, approximately 12 kilometres south of Padum, in Zanskar, Ladakh, northern India. It belongs to the Dugpa-Kargyud monastic order and was one of the first monasteries of this sect to be established in Zanskar...
and Kursha Monastery
Kursha Monastery
Karsha Monastery or Karsha Gompa is a Buddhist monastery in the Padum Valley of the Zanskar region of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in northern India. The Doda River flows past the monastery from its source at the Drang Drung glacier of the Pensi La . It was founded by the translator, Phagspa...
.
How to reach
By Bus:The bus details here apply during the tourist season between July 1 and September 15 only, after this period the Manali-Leh highway is formally closed. The other roads including the highway from Leh to Srinagar via Kargil, remain open until the end of October. Despite of heavy blizzard, the road from Leh to Nubra valley over the extremely high Khardung La is kept open throughout the year.