Mountain Passes of India

Banihal Pass is located across the Pir Panjal Range; the Jawahar Tunnel (1956) bypasses it, so it is no longer used for road transport.

• Banihal Pass sits on the Pir Panjal Range; after the Jawahar Tunnel opened in 1956, it was rendered largely redundant for road traffic.
• Pir Panjal Pass is also known as *Pir ki Gali*.
• Burzil Pass once served as the main route between Gilgit and Srinagar; the region is now a disputed/partitioned territory.

Zoji La in the Zanskar Range is a critical strategic pass on NH1 connecting Srinagar to Kargil and Leh.

• Zoji La (~3,528 m) is the only all-weather Himalayan pass in the western sector that connects Kashmir Valley to Ladakh via NH1.
• Pensi La is known as the "Gateway to Zanskar."
• Khardung La (~5,359 m) in the Ladakh Range provides access to Shyok and Nubra valleys and is a key supply route to Siachen Glacier.

Umling La is the world's highest motorable road pass at over 19,300 ft (5,883 m), constructed by the Border Roads Organisation under Project Himank.

• Umling La surpasses Khardung La (which is 2nd highest) and was constructed by the Border Roads Organisation under Project Himank.
• Mintaka Pass guards the three-nation trijunction where India, China and Afghanistan meet.
• Lanak La lies in the Aksai Chin region, a disputed area between India and China.

Shipki La on the Indo-China border passes through the Jhelum Gorge and links Himachal Pradesh with the Tibet region.

• Shipki La is the main road entry point from India into Tibet via the Sutlej river valley.
• Rohtang Pass (~3,978 m) connects the Kullu valley to the Lahaul-Spiti region; the Atal Tunnel (opened 2020) provides an alternative.
• Bara Lacha La (~4,890 m) sits on the Zanskar Range and carries the Manali–Leh highway.

Lipu Lekh is near the trijunction of India, Tibet, and Nepal and is used by pilgrims on the way to Kailash-Mansarovar.

• Lipu Lekh (~5,334 m) is the highest point on the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra route and is claimed by Nepal in a recent border dispute.
• Mana Pass and Niti Pass are both trans-Himalayan passes connecting Uttarakhand to Tibet.
• Muling La lies north of Gangotri glacier in the higher Himalayan region.

Nathu La in Sikkim connects India (Sikkim) to Tibet (China); it was closed after the 1962 Indo-China War and reopened in 2006 as a trade route.

• Jelep La (~4,267 m) uses the Tista valley as a natural corridor; it is the traditional route between Kalimpong and Lhasa.
• Nathu La (~4,310 m) was an important node on the ancient Silk Route; its reopening in 2006 revived Indo-China border trade.
• Bomdi La (~2,217 m) is one of the lower but strategically important passes in Arunachal Pradesh.

Goram Ghat in the Aravalli Range connects Mewar and Marwar and links Udaipur with Sirohi and Jalore.

• Haldighati (~1,100 m) is historically significant as the site of the famous 1576 battle; the narrow pass made it ideal for guerrilla warfare.
• Asirgarh Pass (Satpura Range) is popularly called the *Dakkani Darwaza* (Doorway to the Deccan) and links the Narmada and Tapti river valleys.

Thal Ghat in the Northern Sahyadri links Nasik to Mumbai and is one of the principal western passes in Maharashtra.

• Thal Ghat and Bhor Ghat are the two major gaps in the northern Western Ghats (Sahyadri) that carry the main rail and road arteries into the Deccan.
• Bhor Ghat carries the Mumbai–Pune highway and railway through one of the most used mountain routes in India.

Pal Ghat (also called Palakkad Gap) between the Nilgiri and Annamalai hills is the widest natural gap in the Western Ghats, connecting Kerala (Kochi) and Tamil Nadu (Chennai).

• Pal Ghat (~45 km wide) is the most important natural break in the Western Ghats; the major railway and road connections between Kerala and Tamil Nadu pass through it.
• Senkota Pass in the southern Western Ghats connects the Thiruvananthapuram region to Madurai via a lower mountain corridor.