Rakchham

Rakchham
राक्छम
Rakchham village
Rakchham
Location in Himachal Pradesh
Coordinates: 31°22′37″N 78°21′58″E / 31.377°N 78.366°E / 31.377; 78.366
Country India
StateHimachal Pradesh
DistrictKinnaur district
Population
 (2011)
 • Total
597
Languages
 • OfficialHindi
 • NativeChitkuli Kinnauri language
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)

Rakchham is a village in Sangla Valley in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh state of India.[1]

Administration

Rakchham is also the geostrategically important proposed HQ of the proposed Maathi-Baspa district near disputed Pulam Sumda on India-Tibet LAC.

Transport

Rakchham is around 569 km from the National capital Delhi, 345 km from Chandigarh[2] and 28 km from Sangla.

From Kharcham at NH5, follow the Baspa River Valley to reach Sangla, Rakchham and then Chitkul.

Karcham-Chitkul-Harshil Road, from Karcham NH-5 to Rakchham-Chitkul and then to Harshil (towards disputed Pulam Sumda on LAC,[3] with a road tunnel under the Lamkhaga Pass,[4][5] is under construction which will cut down present 450 km long distance, which take nearly 16 hours, to just nearly 150 km or 2 to 3 hours.[3] In 2024, BRO began constructing 40-km long Kharcham-Sangla-Chitkul section of Karcham-Harshil Road.[6] This road begins at NH5 (runs from Punjab, via Himachal, to Shipki La on India-Tibet Border).

See also

References

  1. ^ "District Census Handbook: Kinnaur," Census of India 2011, Directorate of Census Operations, Himachal Pradesh, Government of India, 2011
  2. ^ Wravel, Just. "Plan Road Trip Chandigarh to Chitkul Distance | Book Outstation Taxi Cab Chandigarh to Chitkul - JustWravel". www.justwravel.com. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  3. ^ a b Dutta, Amrita Nayak (15 September 2020). "Modi govt's infra push along China border — 2 new roads, alternate route to Daulat Beg Oldie". ThePrint. Retrieved 9 July 2025.
  4. ^ One step closer, Daily Pioneer, 8 October 2020.
  5. ^ BRO plans tunnels to ensure all-weather connectivity in eastern Ladakh, Business Standard, 2 August 2025.
  6. ^ Himachal: BRO to build Karcham-Chitkul road along China border, Hindustan Ties, 15 July 2024.