The Siachen Glacier – Managing Mountains and War

Free to Attend and Open to All. RSVP Required.

Inside the world’s highest, harshest battlefield, this talk covers not only the mountains but the war, politics, financial cost, and human toll of the ongoing conflict in Siachen. Here, India, Pakistan, and China have been engaged in hostilities for decades. The talk includes over 180 photographs documenting the Siachen Glacier and the people involved.

Drawing on visits to the region since 1980, including reaching Karakoram Pass, Col Italia, and Indira Col, the three northernmost points of India, the talk traces the Indian Army’s role in the glacier, the young soldiers who serve there, and the sacrifices they make. It considers the challenges civilian expeditions face on the glacier, questions of leadership, and a proposal for a “Siachen Peace Park” to end the conflict. Though a ceasefire holds today, soldiers continue to endure the glacier’s harsh conditions.

Speakers

Harish Kapadia

Harish Kapadia is one of India’s foremost Himalayan explorers, mountaineers, and authors, whose work has significantly advanced understanding of the Himalaya. Over nearly five decades, he has climbed more than 30 Himalayan peaks, crossed 150 mountain passes, and authored 15 books. As former editor of the Himalayan Journal, he documented the region’s geography, history, and mountaineering heritage. He has received the Royal Geographical Society’s Patron’s Medal, the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, the King Albert Gold Medal, and the IMF Gold Medal.

Prakash Menon

Prakash Menon is Director, Strategic Studies Programme at Takshashila Institution; Professor Emeritus, Trans-Disciplinary University; and Adjunct Professor, NIAS, Bangalore. An infantryman, he served in the Indian Army for nearly forty years, commanding a company on the Siachen Glacier (1989), the Line of Control, and later a Battalion, Brigade, and Counter Insurgency Force in Kashmir. He was Commandant of the National Defence College (2009–2010) and later Military Adviser and Secretary, National Security Council Secretariat, until 2017. He authored Strategy Trap: India and Pakistan under the Nuclear Shadow and co-authored Non-Alignment 2.0 and The Sheathed Sword.