After Zoji La avalanche deaths, Ladakh hill council stakes claim on Zero Point

SRINAGAR: A day after an avalanche struck at Zero Point at Zoji La, located at an altitude of over 11,500 ft, killing seven people from Kargil and injuring six others, Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council-Kargil Saturday accused the Jammu and Kashmir administration of a lax response and urged the govts of Union Territories of Ladakh and J&K to treat Zero Point as part of Ladakh’s territory.

Addressing a press conference in Drass, LAHDC-Kargil councillors praised the Army, civil administration and Ladakh Police for prompt rescue efforts and retrieval of bodies from the snow following the accident on Friday afternoon. However, they expressed surprise over “J&K Police investigating the incident on Saturday morning”. While J&K claimed the area to be part of its territory, its administrative machinery was always slow to respond when any mishap occurred there, they alleged.

The councillors, in fact, disputed J&K’s claim that Zero Point, stretching about five km, falls under its jurisdiction.

J&K officials maintain that Zero Point at Zoji La marks the boundary between Ganderbal district in Kashmir and Kargil district in Ladakh. The councillors, however, said Zero Point is not a boundary, but a location used for snow-clearance operations by two wings of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) --- BEACON and Vijayak, handling the Kashmir and the Ladakh sides, respectively.

The chief executive councillor of LAHDC-Kargil, Dr Mohd Jaffer Akhoon, said since the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of J&K into two UTs on Aug 5, 2019, the boundary at Zoji La had not been demarcated and Zero Point fell under Ladakh’s jurisdiction, he said.

Akhoon said heavy vehicles should not have been allowed to move along with light vehicles on Friday, and urged authorities to allow traffic on the Srinagar-Kargil road only before 11 am to reduce the risk of vehicles getting caught in avalanches. “Local wisdom suggests that during March and April, snow begins to melt at Zoji La in the afternoon, increasing the risk of avalanches,” he said.

While praising BRO for “doing a commendable job in keeping Zoji La open during winter”, Akhnoor stressed that “better management and consideration of local wisdom are needed” to prevent accidents.
Select The Times of India as your preferred source on Google Search