Bara-lacha la

Bara-lacha la
Bara-lacha la
Elevation4,850 m (15,912 ft)
Traversed byLeh–Manali Highway
LocationIndia
RangeHimalaya
Coordinates32°45′31″N 77°25′13″E / 32.75861°N 77.42028°E / 32.75861; 77.42028
Bara-lacha la is located in Himachal Pradesh
Bara-lacha la
Map
Baralachala signpost
Baralacha Top Signpost with Snow-capped peaks in the background.

Bara-lacha la also known as Bara-lacha Pass, or Bārā Lācha La,[1] (el. 4,850 m or 15,910 ft)[2][3] is a high mountain pass in the Zanskar range of Northern-India,[4] connecting Lahaul district in Himachal Pradesh to Leh district in Ladakh. Rail-cum-road tunnels are being constructed under the Bara-lacha la, at 4,750 metres (15,580 ft) high Lungalacha La (84 km north of Bara-lacha la) and 5,184 metres (17,008 ft) high Taglang La (171 km north of Bara-lacha la) to cater to the traffic on the existing NH3 Leh–Manali Highway and the under-construction Bhanupli–Leh line.[citation needed]

View of Bara-lacha La Top during Monsoon with melting snow.

The two headwaters of the Chenab River, Chandra and Bhaga, originate near the Baralacha Pass. The Bhaga river originates from Surya taal lake, which is situated a few of kilometres from the pass towards Manali. The Chandra originates from a glacier in this region.[4] The native name of Chenab, "Chandrabhaga", represents the union of Chandra and Bhaga rivers downstream.

The pass also acts as a water-divide between the Bhaga river and the Yunam river.[5]

  1. ^ Geonames.org. "Bārā Lācha La". Retrieved 6 August 2009.
  2. ^ "Passes and jots in himachal, alist of 61 passes and jots in himachal".
  3. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 6 November 2008. Retrieved 19 November 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ a b Gosal, G.S. (2004). "Physical Geography of the Punjab" (PDF). Journal of Punjab Studies. 11 (1). Center for Sikh and Punjab Studies, University of California: 31. ISSN 0971-5223. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 June 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
  5. ^ R. K. Pant; N. R. Phadtare; L. S. Chamyal & Navin Juyal (June 2005). "Quaternary deposits in Ladakh and Karakoram Himalaya: A treasure trove of the palaeoclimate records" (PDF). Current Science. 88 (11): 1789–1798. Retrieved 6 August 2009.