page_title: Trans-Karakoram Tract
hierarchical_section_title: Trans-Karakoram Tract
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of Kashmir.
context_page_description: The Trans-Karakoram Tract, also known as Shaksgam or the Shaksgam Tract, is an area of more than 2,700 sq mi north of the Karakoram, including the Shaksgam valley and Raskam. The tract is administered by the People's Republic of China as part of its Taxkorgan and Yecheng counties in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Although the area was not part of Kashmir or under Pakistan's control since 1947, it was claimed by Pakistan as part of Kashmir until the 1963 Sino-Pakistan Agreement. It is claimed by India as part of the union territory of Ladakh.
  Most of the tract is composed of the Shaksgam Valley and was formerly administered as part of Shigar, a district in the Baltistan region. A polo ground in Shaksgam was built by the Amacha Royal family of Shigar, and the Rajas of Shigar used to invite the Amirs of Hotan to play polo there. Most of the names of the mountains, lakes, rivers and passes are in Balti/Ladakhi, suggesting that this land had been part of Baltistan/Ladakh region for a long time.
  The tract is one of the most inhospitable areas of the world, with some of the highest mountains.
context_section_description: The Trans-Karakoram Tract (Chinese: 喀喇昆仑走廊; pinyin: Kālǎkūnlún zǒuláng, Hindi: शक्सगाम, romanized: Shaksgām, Urdu: شکسگام‎, romanized: Shaksgám), also known as Shaksgam or the Shaksgam Tract, is an area of more than 2,700 sq mi (6,993 km²) north of the Karakoram, including the Shaksgam valley and Raskam (Yarkand river valley). The tract is administered by the People's Republic of China as part of its Taxkorgan and Yecheng counties in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Although the area was not part of Kashmir or under Pakistan's control since 1947, it was claimed by Pakistan as part of Kashmir until the 1963 Sino-Pakistan Agreement. It is claimed by India as part of the union territory of Ladakh.
  Most of the tract is composed of the Shaksgam Valley and was formerly administered as part of Shigar, a district (formerly a tehsil) in the Baltistan region. A polo ground in Shaksgam was built by the Amacha Royal family of Shigar, and the Rajas of Shigar used to invite the Amirs of Hotan to play polo there. Most of the names of the mountains, lakes, rivers and passes are in Balti/Ladakhi, suggesting that this land had been part of Baltistan/Ladakh region for a long time.
  The tract is one of the most inhospitable areas of the world, with some of the highest mountains. Bounded by the Kun Lun Mountains in the north, and the Karakoram peaks to the south, including Broad Peak, K2 and Gasherbrum, on the southeast it is adjacent to the highest battlefield in the world on the Siachen Glacier region which is controlled by India.
caption: Shaded area
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