India standardises names of 28 Ladakh locations amid border tensions
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New Delhi: India has standardised the names of 28 locations and geographical features in Ladakh on official Survey of India maps, including strategically sensitive sites such as Gogra and Hot Spring along the India-China border, as well as locations in Aksai Chin and Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan that India claims as part of Ladakh.
The Union government identified the locations in consultation with the Ladakh administration, with the exercise aimed at ensuring their accurate identification and improving public awareness of their names.
The 28 features include 10 peaks, three mountains, seven land areas, two passes, two glaciers, one valley, one river, one lake and one water body. Among the politically sensitive names are Dehra Compass and Shamal Lungpa, both associated with the Aksai Chin region, which remains under Chinese control.
Gogra and Hot Spring have particular significance in the India-China border dispute. Both were among the friction points during the military standoff in eastern Ladakh that began in 2020. The two countries completed disengagement at Gogra-Hot Springs, also known as Patrol Point 15, in September 2022.
The list also includes features in Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, such as Chapchingal Pass, Kuksel, and Parpik Glacier. India considers the region part of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir.
The move comes two months after the Centre standardised the names of 27 locations and features in Arunachal Pradesh. China has undertaken similar naming exercises in Arunachal Pradesh since 2017.
The latest Ladakh exercise also comes shortly after India objected to Pakistan and China operationalising a Boundary Joint Commission covering areas along the disputed frontier. India has rejected the 1963 China-Pakistan boundary agreement and maintains its claims over Ladakh.