The benefits of opening a border crossing in Eastern Ladakh to facilitate pilgrimage to Kailash and Mansarovar have been outlined by a Parliamentary committee. Reported in The Times of India the proposal was made by the parliamentary standing committee on transport, tourism and culture which promotes tourism in J&K. This idea has been frequently aired over the last few years and despite recent posturing by China and India in this border area there are clearly individuals who think that the opening of this shorter and more reliable route is still worth pursuing.

The report also recommends the urgent maintenance of several of Ladakh's larger deep relief carvings by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Continuing the heightened profile of the Free Tibet movement another freedom march has been held in Ladakh. An estimated 2500 Ladakhis and Tibetans marched from Spituk to the polo ground in Leh. Click here for more details.

Having gone through various feasibility studies, with occasional coverage in the Indian media over the last 6 months, the Prime Minister's Office has given the construction of a railway linking Bilaspur (HP) with Leh its 'in-principle' approval. The full story is available here.