A Paragraph On Culture and Heritage In The COLD Deserts
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The Cold Desert Cultural Landscape of India is situated in the Himalayas and stretches from Ladakh (in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, or J&K) in the north to Kinnaur (in the state of Himachal Pradesh, or H.P.) in the south. Administratively, it can be said to comprise the Leh and Kargil districts of Ladakh division in J&K, Spiti region of the Lahaul and Spiti district in H.P. and a part of Kinnaur District in the state of H.P.
The region constitutes a Cold Desert biome with harsh climatic conditions, which can be attributed to two factors. One is its location on the leeward side of the Himalayas, which makes it a rain-shadow zone inaccessible to the annual south eastern monsoon winds that sweep the rest of the country, thus creating desert conditions with low levels of precipitation[1]. Second is its very high elevation (ranging from 3000 – 5000m ASL)[2] that adds to the coldness in its environment.A huge seasonal variation is seen in the climatic conditions, ranging from short and dry summers with harsh sunlight (maximum temperature reaching upto 36˚C during the day) to long, windy and freezing winters (minimum temperature touching -32˚C at night). Blizzards, snowstorms and avalanches are common. The soil is not very fertile and the climatic conditions allow very short growing seasons making it a bare landscape. Water resources are minimal and comprise glacier-fed streams.
These physiographic peculiarities and ensuing harsh climatic conditions have led to the emergence of a unique Cold Desert ecosystem as well as Culture of the community, which is unlike any other in the world. Within this one geographic unit lie many settlements, scattered across the landscape at locations that provide marginally improved conditions for habitation, nestled within valleys protected from harsh winds and located near rivulets. The settlements are small, isolated, sparsely populated and their planning a testament to the harsh terrain and environment. The population belongs predominantly to the Indo-Mongoloid (Tibetan) race with some parts of western Ladakh occupied by the Dards, who are intermediaries of Ladakhis and Baltis of the neighbouring Baltistan in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). The property displays a distinct Buddhist culture that is similar to the one of the Tibetan Autonomous Region. The people are simple folk used to hard labour with colourful customs, myths, beliefs and conventions that contrast with the barren and harsh environment andform the cultural highlight of this region.