The Ministry of Home Affairs has standardised the names of 28 places and geographical features in Ladakh on the official Ladakh map published by the Survey of India. The Ministry carried out the exercise on 2 October 2026 in consultation with the Union Territory administration of Ladakh. The updated official map, now available on the Survey of India website, gives single standard names to peaks, passes, glaciers, lakes and strategic land areas including Gogra and Hot Spring.
What Are the 28 Standardised Names in Ladakh?
The Ministry of Home Affairs has notified standard place and feature names for 28 locations in the Union Territory of Ladakh on the official map of the Survey of India (SoI), which is the national mapping agency under the Department of Science and Technology. The list covers ten peaks, three mountains, two passes, two glaciers, one valley, one lake, one river, one water body and seven land areas. The Ministry stated that formal identification on the Ladakh map will ensure accurate recognition and wider public awareness of these features.
The names blend cultural, historical and geographical references. Several peaks honour Buddhist scholars and spiritual figures such as Atisha, Rinchen Zangpo, Sakyasri, Marpa Lotsava and Milarepa, along with Shaivite names such as Shiva Ri and Maheshvara Ri. Other names recall political history. Kanishka Peak recalls the Kushana ruler Kanishka, Martand Giri recalls the Sun temple tradition of Kashmir, and Zorawar Peak recalls General Zorawar Singh, whose campaigns extended Dogra control to Ladakh in the 1830s. Guru Rinpoche, listed as a lake, refers to Padmasambhava, the revered Buddhist master also known as Guru Rinpoche.
The complete list, with feature types as notified, is given below. The Survey of India has published a high resolution Ladakh district map showing these standard names for official and public use.
| S. No. | Name of Place | Feature Type |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atisha Giri | Peak |
| 2 | Brangsa | Land area |
| 3 | Chapchingal Pass | Pass |
| 4 | Kanishka Peak | Peak |
| 5 | Karun Pir | Mountain |
| 6 | Kuksel | Land area |
| 7 | Martand Giri | Peak |
| 8 | Parpik | Glacier |
| 9 | Skamri Glacier | Glacier |
| 10 | Shachmirk Pass | Pass |
| 11 | Shkorga Valley | Valley |
| 12 | Zorawar Peak | Peak |
| 13 | Dehra Compass | Land area |
| 14 | Drak Karpo | Mountain |
| 15 | Gogra | Land area |
| 16 | Jolmori | Mountain |
| 17 | Kumarayana Point | Land area |
| 18 | Panglung | Land area |
| 19 | Rinchen Zangpo | Peak |
| 20 | Sakyasri Giri | Peak |
| 21 | Guru Rinpoche | Lake |
| 22 | Shamal Lungpa | Land area |
| 23 | Yangpa River | River |
| 24 | Hot Spring | Water body |
| 25 | Marpa Lotsava Ri | Peak |
| 26 | Milarepa Kangri | Peak |
| 27 | Shiva Ri | Peak |
| 28 | Maheshvara Ri | Peak |
Where Is Ladakh Located in India?
Ladakh is a high altitude Union Territory in northernmost India between the Himalaya and Karakoram ranges. It shares borders with China in the east and Pakistan in the west, and lies north of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Leh is its largest city.
The Ladakh region appears in the northernmost part of the India map and forms the eastern portion of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Leh Ladakh area spans cold desert plateau land, with most terrain lying above 3,000 metres. The Indus, Shyok and Nubra rivers cut deep valleys through this plateau. These valleys hold the main settlements, while the surrounding slopes support pastoral Changpa herders.
The Ladakh range, Zanskar range and Karakoram range define its physical geography. Famous natural features outside the new list include Pangong Tso and Tso Moriri, both high altitude lakes, and Nubra Valley between Leh and the Karakoram. The Leh to Nubra route crosses Khardung La, one of the highest motorable passes. Leh town itself houses the Leh Palace and the Shanti Stupa, both widely shown landmarks on the Ladakh tourist map, but the administrative and strategic importance of Leh comes from its role as the headquarters of Leh district and the centre of the Ladakh administration.
Is Ladakh a Union Territory?
Ladakh is a Union Territory of India without a legislature, formed on 31 October 2019 under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. It comprises Leh and Kargil districts, with Leh and Kargil as joint capitals. It is not a state.
The creation of Ladakh followed the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A in August 2019 and the passage of the reorganisation law. The former state of Jammu and Kashmir was split into two Union Territories on the appointed day. Jammu and Kashmir retained a legislature, while Ladakh was made a Union Territory without a legislature, administered through a Lieutenant Governor on behalf of the President.
Ladakh is the largest Union Territory by area, with about 59,146 square kilometres under Indian administration, plus territory claimed in Aksai Chin and Gilgit Baltistan shown as part of Leh district on the official India map. It is also among the least populated, with about 2.74 lakh people counted in the 2011 Census. Ladakh district mapping now records two working districts, Leh and Kargil, each guided by an Autonomous Hill Development Council. The Centre has announced five new districts, Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang, which will raise the total number of Ladakh districts to seven when fully created.
| Ladakh Profile | Detail |
|---|---|
| Status | Union Territory without legislature |
| Formation date | 31 October 2019 |
| Parent law | Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 |
| Districts at formation | Leh and Kargil |
| Capitals | Leh and Kargil |
| Official languages | Hindi, English, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi |
| High Court | High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh |
Survey of India Mapping Mandate and Official Map Framework
The Survey of India is the national mapping agency of the country under the Department of Science and Technology. It was set up in 1767 and is the oldest scientific department of the Government of India. The Survey of India headquarters is located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, and the organisation is headed by the Surveyor General of India.
The mandate of the Survey of India covers topographical survey, preparation of base maps and maintenance of the official map of India. Survey of India maps provide the legal reference for state boundaries, international borders and place names used by government departments. The agency also acts as adviser to the government on survey matters, including settlement of boundary questions and inter state limits. Its field work uses ground survey, aerial photography and satellite data from Indian Remote Sensing satellites.
Public access to Survey of India maps works through two main systems. Defence Series Maps carry sensitive details and remain restricted. Open Series Maps, introduced under the National Map Policy of 2005, use the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84) datum and Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) projection and are open to citizens. Survey of India toposheets are published at 1:25,000, 1:50,000 and 1:250,000 scales for planners, researchers, trekkers and engineers. The Survey of India online maps portal, including the Sahyog application and the Naksha portal, allows users to view and download open maps. A registered login gives access to digital toposheets and shapefiles.
| Map Product | Detail |
|---|---|
| Toposheet scales | 1:25,000, 1:50,000 and 1:250,000 |
| Open Series Maps | For public use, WGS 84 datum, UTM projection |
| Defence Series Maps | Restricted, for defence and security use |
| Online access | Survey of India online maps portal and Naksha portal |
Why Standardisation of Geographical Names Matters
Standard geographical names give one spelling, one location and one feature type for every place on government maps. The Ministry of Home Affairs stated that the Ladakh exercise will remove variation in records and help officials, map users and the public use the same reference. Consistent names also support census work, disaster response, infrastructure planning and patrolling in remote high altitude terrain where several local names may exist for the same pass or stream.
The strategic value is clear in eastern Ladakh. Gogra and Hot Spring were among the friction points during the 2020 standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), which is the de facto border between India and China in Ladakh. Patrolling Point 15 at Hot Spring and Patrolling Point 17A near Gogra lie close to the Chang Chenmo river and the Kongka Pass. Disengagement at Gogra was completed in 2021 and at Hot Spring in September 2022, and the two sides later reached patrolling arrangements for Depsang and Demchok in October 2024. Recording Gogra as a land area and Hot Spring as a water body on the official map fixes their standard identity for future administrative use.
Several other names lie in or near Aksai Chin, the high plateau administered by China but claimed by India as part of Ladakh. Brangsa lies east of the Karakoram Pass. Dehra Compass and Shamal Lungpa relate to old caravan and patrol routes across the plateau. Kumarayana Point and the lake named Guru Rinpoche lie near the G219 highway that links Tibet with Xinjiang and serves Chinese military movement. By placing these names on Survey of India records, New Delhi asserts its cartographic position in the same way it maintains the entire Aksai Chin within the Leh district boundary on the official India map.
The Ladakh move follows a similar step in Arunachal Pradesh. In August 2026 the Centre standardised 27 places in Arunachal Pradesh on Survey of India maps, including passes such as Thag La, Dzo La, Riza La and Pukur La, the lake Sambho Sarovar and the Sher-e-Thapa Memorial. That step responded to repeated issuance of Chinese names for places in Arunachal Pradesh, which China terms Zangnan. Four batches of such names were issued between 2017 and 2024. The August and October exercises together show a policy of answering competing claims through formal cartographic records rather than statements alone.
| Standardisation Exercise | Coverage |
|---|---|
| Arunachal Pradesh, August 2026 | 27 places, including 4 passes, 21 land areas, 1 lake and 1 memorial |
| Ladakh, October 2026 | 28 places, including 10 peaks, 3 mountains, 2 passes, 2 glaciers, 1 valley, 1 lake, 1 river, 1 water body and 7 land areas |
Key Takeaways
- The Centre notified 28 standard names in Ladakh on the Survey of India official map on 2 October 2026 in consultation with the Ladakh administration.
- Gogra is recorded as a land area and Hot Spring as a water body, both former friction points linked to Patrolling Point 17A and Patrolling Point 15.
- Ladakh became a Union Territory without legislature on 31 October 2019 under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
- The Survey of India, set up in 1767 and headquartered in Dehradun, functions under the Department of Science and Technology as the national mapping agency.
- In August 2026 the Centre had standardised 27 places in Arunachal Pradesh on Survey of India maps before the Ladakh exercise.
