Pandemic Woes at 13,000 Feet in Villages on Conflicted India-China Border in Eastern Ladakh

Yourgo village in Chushul in eastern Ladakh, ten kilometers from Pongong Tso lake where India-China faced an intense standoff until February. The border villages don't have internet and this has made things difficult for the population during lockdown. Courtesy Kunchok Stanzin

NEW DELHI—The COVID-19 pandemic has aggravated the persisting problems faced by people living in high-altitude, trans-Himalayan villages on the India-China border in eastern Ladakh, which have witnessed intense conflicts over the past year.

The Epoch Times spoke with Konchok Stanzin, the councilor of the Chushul constituency, which consists of 12 villages on the de facto border and includes the area near the Pangong Tso lake—one of the main epicenters of the past year’s tensions.