Siachen Glacier Dispute

Siachen Glacier ranks amongst the longest mountain glaciers in the world. The Siachen conflict between India and Pakistan is virtually hidden from public view and has entered its fourth decade now. A new term, "oropolitics", was coined after the Siachen conflict, and it means mountaineering with a political goal. Before we delve into the nitty-gritty of what is Siachen Glacier dispute, let us first learn some details about Siachen Glacier, like where is Siachen Glacier, Siachen Glacier height, and other details which are crucial to understanding the reason behind the dispute.

Siachen Glacier location lies in the Karakoram ranges in Kashmir, close to the India-Pakistan border. The glacier extends for a distance of 70 kilometres from north-northwest to south-southeast. There are many fast-flowing streams in the glacier area and a minimum of 12 medial moraines. The 50 miles long Nubra river (a tributary of Shyok) source lies in the Siachen glacier. Nubra river belongs to the Indus River system.

Siachen Glacier situated in these mountain ranges, is the highest battleground, with Siachen Glacier height being over 6000 meters. Both India and Pakistan have their permanent military presence at this high altitude.

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When we talk about Siachen Glacier dispute, we must mention the name of the Indian army Colonel Narendra Bull Kumar, who can be deemed as the modern father of oropolitics. Due to his pioneering explorations, India could take Siachen Glacier from Pakistan in early 1984.

Siachen Glacier is an important part of the Asian region as it demarcates the Indian subcontinent from Central Asia and also separates China from Pakistan in the region. Whoever gets an advantageous position in the Siachen Glacier area, that country would become a threat to other countries around it. Siachen helps India keep a close watch on China's activities.

There are many factors about Siachen Glacier that make it a difficult area to defend, and the main reason is its climatic condition. The temperature in these glaciers drops below -60 degrees in winters. Along with weather issues, there is also a constant threat of avalanches, high-speed winds, and crevasses on the glacier. Soldiers keep getting affected by fatal diseases like frostbites, hypothermia, hypoxia, and whiteouts.

• Pakistan was the first country to notice the potential of this strategic location which was an unoccupied area at that time. It used to send mountaineering expeditions to the glaciers. 

• In early 1981 Colonel Narendra Bull Kumar found something fishy about these expeditions and raised the alarm. The colonel got permission to map the whole area, which the Pakistan army sensed and planned a mission to occupy the area.

• Pakistan's mission failed due to intelligence failure.

• In April 1984, India secretly launched Operation Meghdoot, where they urgently and surreptitiously dispatched troops to Siachen Glacier.

• India got control of the glacier as well as surrounding Saltoro ridge (with the use of Col Kumar's maps) before Pakistani soldiers could reach the region.

• The war started with climbing ropes and crampons, which soon turned into high-altitude trench warfare.

• On April 13th, 1984, Indian troops took over control of Siachen Glacier in the Northern Kashmir region, beating Pakistan narrowly.

• Now, after four decades, the two armies are still locked in a stand-off, but India is determined to hang on to it at any cost.

• Kumar Base is one of the key installations by Indians in Siachen, which is named after Colonel Kumar.

• The Pakistanis counter-attacked under Brigadier General Pervez Musharraf a few years later, which was amongst the several attacks that failed to dislodge the Indian army from Siachen Glaciers.

Attempts by Pakistan Army to Reclaim Siachen Glacier From India

The Pakistani army is finding it difficult to digest the dominance of India in the Siachen Glacier region. That is why they carried out many operations to take back control from India.

• In 1987 Brigadier General Pervez Musharaff led a massive attack to reclaim the height but with little success.

• The same year, a little after the attack, Pakistani's lost one of their major posts called "Quaid."

• "Quaid" was renamed as Bana post in honour of the soldier who captured it, Bana Singh.

• Bana Singh had to climb an icy 1500 feet to attack the enemies.

• Bana post is at 22,143 feet above sea level and the highest battlefield post in the world.

• Kargil operations were launched in 1999 as India could gauge they might have to give up Siachen.

• Since capturing Kargil could ensure control over National Highway 1 that supplies Ladakh, Pakistanis assumed that India would be forced to give up Siachen in exchange for regaining Kargil. Instead, Pakistanis were ousted by Indian soldiers in the Kargil war.

• Today India has control over the entire 70 kilometres of Siachen along with its tributary glaciers. 

• India also controls the three main passes of Saltoro ridge: Bilafond La, Sia La, and Gyong La.

• Pakistanis have managed to hang on to only the lower level foothills and slopes on the west side of Saltoro ridge.

The Waste of Men and Money In The War

There has been an estimated death of 2700 Indian and Pakistani troops in the Siachen Glacier conflict. A vast majority of these deaths was not because of actual combat between the two armies, but avalanches, altitude sickness due to thin and oxygen-depleted air, exposure, etc., were primary causes of these deaths.

Siachen veterans say that this has been a shocking waste of men and money. Stephen Cohen, who is a US specialist in South Asia, made a comment about this war that it was like two bald men fighting over a comb. According to him, Siachen did not hold much military importance. This statement could have been comforting unless the two nations (India and Pakistan) did not possess nuclear weapons.

Interesting Facts About Siachen Glacier

• "Sia" refers to the rose plant family in the Balti language, and "Chun" means anything which is found in abundance. So Siachen means "a region which has an abundance of rose flowers."

• Siachen Glacier marks the highest battlefield in the world.

• The average elevation of Siachen Glaciers above sea level is 17770 feet. Due to this, the temperature is mostly freezing here, and the air is also very low in oxygen (Just 10% of what we have on grassland).

• Siachen Glacier stands as a barrier between Baltistan and Shaksgam valley. Pakistan occupies the former while the latter is under China's control. Siachen is a significant element in preventing link-up of Pakistani and Chinese armies, thereby protecting Ladakh.

• India spends approximately 5 to 7 crores daily to guard the Siachen. This comes to more than 3000 crores of expenditure by India annually.

• Around 3000 soldiers are always on duty in the glacier. Each soldier doing the duty in Siachen remains there for three months as no one can survive the harsh weather of glaciers for more than that duration.

• After the Indian army gained control of Siachen in 1984, more than 1000 soldiers have died (which is surprisingly double the number of soldiers that died in the Kargil war) protecting the Siachen Glacier. 

• You can see a war memorial on the Nubra river, which has the names of all the Indian soldiers who died for their country.

• Pakistan has lost around 1800 soldiers over Siachen Glacier.

• As of date, India is in a dominating position on the Saltoro ridge, which is fully in its control. Pakistani troops are stationed 3000 feet below that.

• Siachen Glacier is the world's 2nd largest glacier in the non-polar regions of the world.

• Siachen Glacier's location is in the south of the drainage divide separating the Indian subcontinent from the Eurasian plates. It is a highly glaciated region of the Karakoram; hence, it is called the "3rd pole".

• The Siachen Glacier lies within territories of Ladakh, which is now converted into Union Territories. 

• Bringing down waste from the glacier has been made as SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) for the Indian army as part of the waste management concept. This is because nothing degrades in those high altitudes of 18,000 to 21,000 with sub-zero temperatures. 

• Sometimes soldiers' own sweat becomes its enemy in Siachen Glacier since it converts to ice and clogs gloves and shoes.

It takes a lot in terms of resources to stay in Siachen by Indian And Pakistani Armies. The total brigade strength in Siachen Glacier by both Indian and Pakistani armies is around 5000 troops. India spends 5 to 7 crore daily for maintenance in this region. India has spent over 7500 crores to procure mountaineering equipment and clothing for its soldiers. In terms of human cost, since 1984, more than 1000 Indian personnel and 1800 Pakistani soldiers have died due to bad climatic conditions of the Siachen Glaciers. One of the worst incidents happened when in 2012, an avalanche killed 140 Pakistani soldiers. The avalanche slammed into their army camp, which was situated in the Gyari region of Siachen.