This story is from October 21, 2019

Siachen now open to tourists: Rajnath Singh

Siachen area open for tourists, tourism: Rajnath Singh
Key Highlights
  • Government on Monday announced that Siachen area, the world's highest battlefield, is now open to tourists
  • This will boost tourism in Ladakh and allow people to appreciate the tough work done by Army soldiers and engineers in extreme weather conditions and inhospitable terrains, Rajnath Singh said
NEW DELHI: The government on Monday declared that the forbidding Siachen Glacier-Saltoro Ridge region, which is the world’s highest and coldest battlefield between India and Pakistan, would now be re-opened for tourism.
“Siachen area is now open for tourists and tourism. From the Siachen base camp (situated at an altitude of 12,300-feet) to Kumar post (15,600-feet), the entire area has been opened for tourism purposes,” said defence minister Rajnath Singh.

This will boost tourism in Ladakh and allow people to appreciate the tough work done by Army soldiers and engineers in extreme weather conditions and inhospitable terrains, added the minister, while inaugurating the strategically important “Col Chewang Rinchen” bridge over river Shyok that connects Durbuk and Daulat Beg Oldie in eastern Ladakh near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.
Though Singh was sanguine about the ties with China, stressing the two countries had handled their “perceptional differences” over the LAC with “great maturity and responsibly” without escalating matters, his statement on re-opening the Siachen area to tourists is sure to rile Pakistan.
Pakistan in the past has protested against the Indian Army’s conduct of month-long civilian trekking expeditions to the forbidding heights of Siachen, which began in 2007 and continued for some time before being suspended a couple of years ago.
India had gone ahead with the treks to underline that almost all the “dominating heights” in Siachen are occupied by Indian troops and that the glacial area remains non-negotiable till Pakistan accepts iron-clad “authentication'' of the 110-km Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), both on the map and on the ground, as was earlier reported by TOI.

The announcement about the re-opening of Siachen for tourism came a few days ahead of Ladakh being made a separate Union Territory on October 31, following the Modi government’s decision on August 5 to abrogate the special status of J&K and split the state into two UTs.
“The distance between the Siachen base camp and the Kumar post is 56 km. It takes around four days to cover the distance, with acclimatization at different heights. Treks by civilians to Siachen, with the help of the Army, can take place from May onwards next year. The modalities are being worked out,” said a senior Army officer.
The defence minister, on his part, said, “Kashmir is India’s internal and integral matter. Even the Chinese President Xi Jinping did not mention Kashmir in his meeting with PM Narendra Modi. China’s recent statement for action against terror is also significant.”
The government’s decision to make Ladakh into a separate UT has fulfilled the “long-pending demand” of the people in the region. “Like the rest of the country, Ladakh will now become a destination for investment. There will also be a boost in revenue generation and employment opportunities for local people,” he said.
The government is committed to bolstering border infrastructure “to effectively deal with any threats that undermine the peace and tranquility” in the country, he added.
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