Two amateur ice-skaters died in ladakh’s famous Pangong lake when they mistakenly rolled over a thin sheet of frozen layer of the expansive strategic lake whose water is shared by India and China. The police and locals have fished out body of 22-year-old skater Padma Chuktup but his companion was untraceable.
The area in Nyoma block is around 250 kilometres from district headquarters of leh. The area is reeling under intense cold wave with night temperature oscillating between minus 27 and minus 30 degrees Celsius. Ice-hockey, ice-skating and other forms of winter sports, including skiing, are the choicest pastime for ladakhi youngsters during the winter season when the region remains cut-off from the outer world.
Sources said that Chuktup and his 16-year-old friend Stanzing lawang were fond of skating on the frozen surface of Pangong lake and spent several hours inside the lake to test their skills using locally fabricated iron skates.
last weekend, however, they rolled over a thin sheet of ice that crushed and drowned them. There was no trace of them for two days. On Sunday, Chuktup’s body was retrieved but lawang was still untraceable.
Police said that lawang is believed to be dead and efforts were on to fish out his body. Police said that a party from Chushool Police Station has reached the spot to help local rescuers. Strategically located Pangong lake is owned jointly by India and China. It turns into a hot tourist spot during summers.
“ladakhis are usually skillful in winter sports. We usually treat minor injuries to skaters and skiiers. This is the first time when skaters fell into a lake and fatal casualties are reported,” Dr Muhammad Iqbal told The Pioneer over phone from Nyoma sub-district hospital.
Most of the rivers, lakes and rivulets in ladakh region freeze in winter allowing the locals to use them as walkways. The famous Chaddar nullah flowing from Zanaskar to leh completely freezes and skaters roll over its surface to travel between the two Buddhist dominated regions of ladakh. The ferocious Chaddar nullah in summers flows into the Indus River near leh.