The village is located on the right bank of the
Indus River below
Dah.[6] It is at an altitude of 9000 meters.[7] It has six hamlets: Changra, Fantola, Haroo, Rama, Sirchangarh, and Thamtse.[8] It also includes a hamlet named Gurgurdo, which lies five miles west of Garkone.[1]
The stream descending from the adjoining mountains (called Baroro stream or Garkon Nala) provides water to its fields for agriculture, and drains into the Indus.[6] The stream is neighboured by the Gurgurdo stream in the west, which drains into the Indus at
Batalik, and the Yaldor stream to the east, which joins the Indus at
Dah.[9][10] All three streams are accessible from the
Ganokh valley to the north, by crossing mountain passes.[11]
The village is very close to the
line of control (LOC) with Pakistan-administered
Baltistan, which runs along the ridge separating the Ganokh valley with Gurgurdo, Ganokh and Yaldor valleys. Garkon,
Hordas, and
Batalik on the Indian side and
Marol on the Pakistani side are important villages along the Indus from east to west.[12][need quotation to verify] Gurgurdo, Garkhon, and Yaldor were focal points in the
Kargil War because of their strategic location.[3]
These villages grow apples, apricots, mulberries, and grapes.[6] Apricot trees in particular are prevalent as in most of Ladakh, as the trees are long-lived and drought-resistant, and usually do not require irrigation, fertiliser or pesticides.[13]
History
At Gurgurdo, the border between Ladakh and Baltistan was set up in the 17th century followed by the battle between the kingdom of
Ali Sher Khan Anchan and Gyalpo
Jamyang Namgyal. It has a sequence of seven strategically placed watchtowers, now in ruins, which previously guarded the frontier.[14][15]
After the
Dogra general
Zorawar Singh annexed Ladakh and Baltistan, Garkon was placed in the Kargil ilaqa (subdistrict), along with Darchik and Sanacha.[16] Gurgurdo and other northern villages remained in the
Kharmangilaqa under the administration of its traditional raja.[17]
Shepherds from Garkon were the first to note and report the intrusion of armed Pakistani men in the 1990s.[18]
The presence of the Indian Army along the nearby line of control has greatly affected the traditional way of life in Garkon. For example, villagers own fewer goats due to military occupation of the high alpine summer pastures, but more donkeys; the men of the work as porters for the army, hauling supplies up to the border posts, and sometimes bringing bodies back down [19]
Administration
Garkon is the headquarters of a
gram panchayat in the Kargil district, which administers Garkon and
Darchik villages.[20]
The Garkon panchayat seat includes the following area as a panch constituency :[21]
Vohra, Rohit (1990), "Mythic Lore and Historical Documents from Nubra Valley in Ladakh", Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, 44 (1/2), Akadémiai Kiadó: 225–239,
JSTOR23658122