Thapas of Suru Valley, Ladakh

 

Haji Gulam Mohd

According to Haji Gulam Mohd, 96 yrs, of Kargi village in Suru valley, of Kargil distrit, Ladakh, when he was young, life in his village and the Suru Valley, much like the rest of Ladakh, was incredibly challenging. Poverty was widespread, and it was common for people to borrow wheat from others, repaying it only in the following year. The Shaktaga and Bhangapa families were among the wealthiest during those times, with Haji Ibrahim from the Shaktaga family being particularly notable.

To supplement their limited means, Gulam Mohd and many other men from Suru Valley would travel during autumn, typically around October or November, to work as laborers in places like Punjab, Shimla, Dehradun, Mussoorie, and Chakrata. They would traverse the Chilong Nala Warwan route, reaching to Kangan in Kashmir and  then beyond to the plains of India.

The Suru men chose to go to these north Indian locations only during autumn for two reasons: first, they spent their summer working in the fields until the harvest in Suru and attending to other domestic responsibilities; second, traveling in summer would mean enduring the extreme heat of north India, which the Ladakhis were not accustomed to.

Gulam Mohd recalls that in Mussoorie, there was a law that required pedestrians to pay Rs. 1.50 just to walk on the road. He was about 15 to 20 years old at the time, but he cannot remember if this was before or after India's independence. For blasting work, he earned Rs. 2 per day. He also visited Punjab and Shimla. The men from Suru Valley always traveled in groups of 15-20.

In Suru, there was a unique practice of referring to men who went to work in North India respectfully as Thapa, (not to be confused with the Nepali term). Often, these men would send letters back home, written in pure Persian or Urdu, using phrases like  Kuwate Bazoo (strength of the arm) and Rahate Jaan (peace of soul). The villages in Suru are divided into two parts: Thongos in the south and Satay in the north. The letters would convey Salaam ( Greetings) to all the villagers by name, a villager would then run from Thongos to Satay, delivering these greetings to each family.

When news of the Thapas' return reached Suru around April, it was a time of celebration. The villagers would go out on horses to receive them.