Life Frozen in Snow in Dansar Thang, a Village Adjacent to the Ladakh Border — Women’s Grueling Journey in Search of Water

In the border village of Dansar Thang in District Kharmang, Baltistan, recent heavy snowfall has frozen the flow of daily life. The mountains are covered with a white blanket, access roads are blocked, and drinking water pipelines have frozen. In these conditions, local residents—especially women—are forced to fetch water by traveling four kilometers along dangerous, slippery mountain paths.
Talking to leading community members revealed that the severe shortage of clean drinking water has badly disrupted daily life. Children, the elderly, and patients are all affected by this crisis. Expressing serious concern over the negligence of the administration and the Water Supply Department, residents are demanding that clean drinking water and basic health facilities be provided on an emergency basis.Taking notice of a news report published about the water issue in Dansar, Secretary LGRD and Acting Director LGRD Baltistan, Raja Mirza Kareem, contacted the area by phone to assess the situation and assured that immediate steps would be taken to resolve the problem.Meanwhile, XEN LGRD Kharmang, Inayat Ali Shigri, stated that a Rs. 4 million project had been approved through LGRD by former Minister for Works Amjad Zaidi, and the tender process has also been completed. However, when the department reached the site to provide the layout, the project was delayed due to a water rights dispute between Maqal and Dansar.
He further added that practical work on the project will begin in the coming season, after which water supply in the area is expected to be restored.
Even today, the residents of Dansar Thang continue to wait for the day when water will flow from taps in their homes, and women will no longer have to endure this daily, arduous journey across snow-covered mountains.