Know your state Ladakh GK Notes 2021 – Culture, Geography, History, Economy, Education and Govt. Policies

Hello Folks! Hope you all are doing well. Presently, we are up with a recently formed union territory i.e. Ladakh. In this discourse, we will be discussing about the cultural, geographical, political, historical and economic features of this region.

Where is Asia’s largest telescope? Where is the highest bridge in the world located? What is the famous food of Ladakh?

Ladakh is popularly known as the Land of High Passes and considered as one of the most beautiful regions of India.

Let’s explore more about Ladakh.

Firstly let’s look at the cultural aspects of this union territory.

CULTURE Ladakh GK Notes:

Ladakh has a strong influence of Tibetan culture. The region is popularly known as “Mini Tibet”.The people of Ladakh are proud of their rich culture. They never miss any opportunity to celebrate their culture rooted in history.

• The people of Ladakh are influenced by Buddhism and the Tibetan lifestyle. The people of Ladakh are jovial by nature and love celebrating their culture.
• Festivals celebrated in Ladakh are harvest related or socio-religious by nature. Famous festivals in Ladakh are Hems Tse-Chu, Dosmoche Festival, Losar Festival, Sindhu Darshan Festival, Ladakh Festival, Tak-Tok Festival etc.
• Dishes like Thupka, Momos, Sku and Thenthuk are popular and commonly cooked in Ladakhi homes. Food items like Paba and Tangtur as well as Butter Tea are ancient recipes that are popular in Ladakh.
• The men in Ladakh commonly wear a long woollen robe called Goucha while women wear a similar robe called Kuntop & the Bok.
• Ladakhi is the mother tongue or first language of the people of Ladakh while the Official language of Ladakh is Hindi and English.

Let’s study about the geographical features of Ladakh.

GEOGRAPHY Ladakh GK Notes:

The geographical region of Ladakh union territory is the highest altitude plateau area in India assimilating parts of the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges and the upper Indus River valley.

Total Area: 59,146 km²

Total population: 274,289

Latitude: 34.2268° N

Longitude: 77.5619° E

• Ladakh is one of the highest regions of the world. Its natural features consist mainly of high plains and deep valleys.
• Ladakh borders Tibet to the east, Lahaul and Spiti regions to the south, Jammu and Baltiyul regions to the west, and Xinjiang across the Karakoram Pass in the north.
• Indus River is the backbone of Ladakh. All the major places such as Shey, Leh, Basgo, and Tingmosgang are situated close to the river.
• Pangong Lake is one of the most famous lakes in Leh Ladakh. The lake derived its name from the Tibetan word “Pangong Tso” which means high grassland lake.
• The fauna as well as flora of Ladakh matches with the Tibetan Plateau and Central Asia.
• Ladakh is noted for being home to about 318 species of birds.
• Bharal, Tibetan urial sheep, marmot, Tibetan argali sheep and Tibetan wild ass are some of the commonly seen species in Ladakh.
• Tibetan gazelle, Tibetan antelope, red fox, lynx, Pallas’s cat, and Tibetan Wolf are some of the rare animal species seen in Ladakh.
• Hemis National Park is a high altitude national park in Ladakh that is globally famous for snow leopards.
• The climate of Ladakh is cold and dry. Average annual precipitation is roughly 3 inches i.e. fine, dry, flaked snow is frequent and sometimes falls heavily.

Now let’s discuss about Political aspects of the union territory.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS Ladakh GK Notes:

The government of Ladakh is governed by the authority of the Indian union territory of Ladakh and its two districts. The management is led by a Lieutenant Governor which is appointed by the President of India who acts on behalf of the Central Government of India. Ladakh does not have an elected legislative assembly.

Present Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh: Shri Radha Krishna Mathur

It’s time to look over the historical aspects of Ladakh.

HISTORY Ladakh GK Notes:

The history of Ladakh can be traced clearly after the 9^th Century. The empire of Ladakh was inaugurated around 950 CE when the early Tibetan Empire slumped.

• The ancient inhabitants of Ladakh were Dards who were an Indo- Aryan dynasty.
• The new-comers of Tibet, Skardo and nearby parts like Purang, Guge settled in Ladakh of whose ethnic characters were incompatible with preliminary habitants.
• Buddhism bombed from central India to Tibet by way of Ladakh leaving its imprints in Ladakh.
• Islamic promoters also made a peaceful penetration of Islam in Ladakh in the early 16^th century.
• In 1947, Ladakh became a part of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir and was governed from Srinagar. 
• In 1979 when the reorganization of the districts was carried out, Ladakh was partitioned into two full-fledged districts of Leh and Kargil.
• On 31 October 2019, Ladakh was declared as a union territory and got separated from the rest of Jammu and Kashmir.

Let’s gaze on the economic aspects of Ladakh.

ECONOMY Ladakh GK Notes:

The Economy of Ladakh has been based on small farms and herding. Ladakh’s economy is a stable and self-reliant rural economy. A small-scale farming system was developed by the Ladakhis. Livestock is also a major part of Ladakh’s economy. The principal crops grown here are barley and wheat. The tourist sector has developed Ladakh’s economy to a great extent. People of Ladakh are employed in the tourism industry.

Education Ladakh GK Notes:

Ladakh is a new union territory of India, the government of India is taking steps to enhance the education system and move ahead in the development stage. Ladakh will not have a separate educational board so the school education will be handled by the education wing of Jammu and Kashmir Union territory. Ladakh has been witnessing an increase in the number of schools and higher education institutions. The Student’s Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh is an Indian non-governmental organisation based in Ladakh that aimed at reforming the educational system of Ladakh, by a group of young Ladakhis returning from university who understood the problems of the younger generation with modern education, their lack of focus and the cultural confusion. The literary rate of Ladakh is about 80.5% which is above the average literacy rate of India.

Sports Ladakh GK Notes:

Archery is a popular sport among the people of Ladakh. Hunting, Polo and cricket are also important sports enjoyed by the majority in Ladakh.

Here are some interesting facts about Ladakh:

• Ladakh has India’s first robotic and largest telescope in Asia which is located in the remote village of Hanle.
•  Ladakh is a land of the rare twin-humped Bactrian camels. These camels can survive in up to the lowest temperature as nearly as -40°.
• The Karzoo Ice Hockey Rink in Ladakh is the world’s highest natural ice hockey rink.
• The Highest Bridge in the World between the Suru River and Dras River, the Bailey bridge was constructed by the Indian Army in the rough Himalayan Ranges of Ladakh.

Therefore, this was all the major information about Ladakh that will help in your preparation for competitive exams like SSC CGL, CDS, Civil Services and NDA etc.

In the next blog, we would be discussing some interesting facts and trivia about the state of Ladakh. Click here for Know your State – ‘Ladakh’.
We would recommend that you should also check out our very informative blog on the beautiful Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Click here – Know your State ‘Jammu and Kashmir‘.

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