TurTuk — The Last Frontier
Turtuk, has a kind of ring to it right, indeed it does. Apart from the crowded atmosphere and victorious selfies found in Khardung La, the glory of this village is only witnessed by the highest of mountains.
Turtuk is the last village of the Nubra valley. As we approach this village the transition from the barren sands to golden brown wheat fields among the greenery of trees is breathtaking.
“One of the most beautiful and the northernmost borders that any civilian can enjoy” was tagline of the photo that I happen to see in an article and that’s how I came to know about Turtuk.
Turtuk was under Pakistan was recaptured by the Indian Army in a single night on 1971. The villagers, at night they had their supper and went to bed with their families, and woke up being a part of India the next morning.
This story was one of the main reasons which led me to Turtuk.
We reached Turtuk in a late afternoon, a village of peace and harmony. The scenic beauty was filled with countless apricot and apple trees intertwined with wheat fields, children with a playful games and mischievous laughs, and elderly watching over them in a distance. Right out of any children's book.
It wouldn’t be exaggeration to call Turtuk a land with ever flowing streams and plethora; a dream land of fertility and nourishment.
If one was ever to choose Turtuk as a movie location, I assure that they wouldn’t been needing a set. Its natural beauty will overpower anything else and would diminish any other artificial movie sets.
Turtuk is mainly divided in two by the Turtuk bridge which is called Turtuk Tukpo. Beneath which we see the ever turbulent Shyok river, with its icy cold waters. On one side we see fertile grounds consisting of mostly wheat fields.
Nearby Tukpo there is a primary school. We visited it one afternoon, and met many children. We felt delighted seeing their joy while gifted them crayons, pencils and powerbars.
In a little distance from the school, there is a quite waterfall. While asking about it we found out that we Indians don’t often visit the waterfall much although foreigners seldom miss it.
The other side of the river is mostly residential area. There are many guest houses for travelers. The guest houses are made in a traditional way with wood and stones. You always find children running around and shying away when they see you which is very cute I might add.
While we were in Turtuk, all men and women were busy stocking up for the upcoming winters.
One more thing, the young women can always be found in some vocational jobs. This is another thing that makes Turtuk more beautiful, women empowerment.
Another interesting thing about Turtuk is its water supply and drainage system. A strictly professional approach can be seen in the drainage and irrigation systems.
The Turtuk community is predominantly Islamic, we hardly saw other religion whilst our stay in Turtuk. Before independence, Turtuk was part of Baltistan in Pakistan and the people were known as the Balti people, and the local language spoken is Balti. Balti is a spoken language, meaning there is no written form for Balti. The people here don’t know to write or read Balti, they can only converse in it. Because of these reasons Urdu is the primary written language. We can also make do with Hindi and Ladakhi to get around.
Although the people are very friendly and most can converse with tourists in Hindi and even a little bit in English.
Balti people have their education mainly in the sainik school which has been operational for a while now. Primary and emergency medical care is also provided by the armed forces.
It would be unfair not to mention the Armed forces without whom Turtuk wouldn’t be this self-sustained. My salute to the BSF.
Turtuk has been open for tourism from 2009.
Turtuk shares many similarities with Tibetan and Mongolian cultures.
In many ways, Turtuk is a place which can be made an exemplary land for people to learn and get inspired. So I would suggest adding Turtuk to your bucket list right now, you’ll never regret it.
