ABOUT THE LADHAKIS
The Ladhaki people and the Tibetans, both whose cultures and lives are affected by the Indo-China border problem are related to each other. They are the most fascinating and most isolated group of people on the earth. More than 100,000 Ladhakhi people, who are related to Tibetans, live in the highest mountain range in the world, the Himalayas. The majority live on the southern slopes in northern India, while a smaller number live inside Tibet. Before the Chinese invasion of Ladhak, all Ladhaki lived in India. The Aksai-Chin area is a territory of 30.000 sq kilometers with almost no population except a few nomads and life in general for the Ladhakis is hard. The region hardly recieves any rainfall, with no more than three inches per year. Farmers rely on melted snow to water their crops. Winter temperatures remain constant at minus 30 degree Celsius (-22 degrees Fahrenheit). The Ladhaki share the beliefs of their Tibetan neighbors. Tibetan Buddhism, mixed with images of ferocious demons from the pre-Buddhist Bon religion, has been the stronghold in Ladhak for more than a thousand years. Taking the whole of Ladakh there are 52% Buddhists, 47% Muslims and about 1% minority
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