Shaksgam Valley
Also called: Trans-Karakoram Tract · Topic: India and her Neighbours · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Shaksgam valley is an area of about 5,180 sq km that lies north of the Karakoram range. It was part of the old princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan held the area and handed it to China in a 1963 border agreement. India says Pakistan had no right to do this and does not accept the transfer. Because of this, the valley is part of India's claim in the western sector of its boundary with China.
Example
The Shaksgam valley lies just north of the Siachen glacier and the Karakoram crest in Ladakh. China, Pakistan-held Gilgit-Baltistan and India's Siachen area all meet near it.
Don't confuse with
- Aksai Chin: Aksai Chin is a high cold desert of about 38,000 sq km in eastern Ladakh. China has held it since the 1950s. Shaksgam, by contrast, was handed to China by Pakistan in 1963.