About Ladakh
Ladakh is a high-altitude union territory in India's far north, between the Karakoram range and the Great Himalaya. It became a union territory on 31 October 2019, when the former state of Jammu and Kashmir was reorganised into two union territories. Leh is its main town, and Kargil the second.
- Status
- Union territory since 31 October 2019
- Main towns
- Leh and Kargil
- Area
- about 59,000 km² under Indian administration
- Population
- about 2.7 lakh (2011 census)
- Languages
- Ladakhi and Purgi are widely spoken; Hindi and English are also used
Geography
Ladakh is a cold desert: most of it lies above 3,000 metres, rainfall is very low and winters are long and harsh. The Indus river flows through the region. Well-known landscapes include the Nubra Valley, the high lakes Pangong Tso and Tso Moriri, and the Khardung La pass. Drass, near Kargil, is one of the coldest inhabited places in India.
Culture
Leh district is largely Tibetan Buddhist, with monasteries such as Hemis, Thiksey, Diskit and Lamayuru, while Kargil district is mostly Muslim. The Hemis festival in summer and Losar, the Ladakhi new year, are major celebrations.
History
Ladakh was an independent Himalayan kingdom for centuries and an important stop on trade routes between Tibet, Kashmir and Central Asia. It became part of the Dogra kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir in the 19th century and remained a region of that state until 2019. The Kargil war of 1999 was fought in the mountains around Kargil and Drass.
Maps
Page added October 2026. Older pages on this site describe Leh and Kargil as part of Jammu and Kashmir.