->Monkbot at 12:35, 13 December 2020

2020-12-13T12:35:07Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox mountain pass
| name = Dehra Compass
| map = Xinjiang#India Ladakh
| map_caption =
| location = Aksai Chin
| coords = {{coord|34|55|30|N|78|41|30|E|type:landmark|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| elevation_m = 5450
| elevation_ref =
| traversed =
| range =
| topo =
}}

'''Dehra Compass''' or '''Dehra Kompas''' ({{lang|zh|迪拉村}}) is the location of a historical caravan campsite in [[Aksai Chin]]. It is under Chinese control and claimed by India. Historically, the camp was used by caravans journeying between the [[Indian subcontinent]] and [[Tarim Basin]]. It was traversed by European explorers during the 1800s.<ref name="trotter">{{cite journal
| title = Trotter on the Geographical Results of the Mission to Kashgar in 1873-4
| editor = John Murray
| publisher = William Clowes and Sons
| work = The Journal of the Royal Geographical Society
| date = 1878
| volume = 48
| access-date = 1 January 2020
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SGfC-32NuCQC&pg=PA324&dq=%22dehra+kompas
| quote = (p182) and then goes over a spur (Kompás La) 18,160 feet in height and descends into the bed of Kárákásh River (p189) The highest elevation at which our tents were pitched was at Dehra Kompás camp, 17,890 feet above sea-level
}}</ref> At one point, there were stone shelters constructed at this location to facilitate camping.<ref name="karkra"/>

== Etymology ==
'Dehra' is derived from the [[Punjabi language|Punjabi]] and [[Seraiki language|Seraiki]] language word 'dera', meaning camp, while 'Compass' comes from the name of a survey officer, Kompas Walla.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bates |first=Charles Ellison |title=Central Asia: A contribution towards the better knowledge of the topography, ethnology, resources, & history of Ladak |year=1878 }}</ref>

== Sino-Indian border dispute ==
In the [[events leading to the Sino-Indian War]], Indian patrols used Kompas La and Dehra Compass to monitor the area.<ref name="karkra">{{cite book|last=Karkra|first=Bal Krishan|title=The Police Warriors on The Indo-Chinese Border in Ladakh|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EIu5DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA85|date=October 23, 2019|publisher=Walnut Publication|isbn=978-81-943486-1-0|pages=85–86|quote=... to look for further evidence of the P.L.A. penetration in the Region. After crossing a mountain pass, Dehra La, Karam reached Dehra Compass (Lat. 34 degrees 56 minutes N, Long. 78 degrees 41 minutes E, Elevation 5450 metres) well before the last light. The place had quite a few stone huts suitable for stay. There were again unmistakable signs of some people having halted there not long ago.}}</ref> Chinese troops gained control of this area after May 1961.<ref name="(Retd)2018">{{cite book|author=Col Y Udaya Chandar (Retd)|title=Independent India's All the Seven Wars|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pwxFDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT191|date=January 2, 2018|publisher=Notion Press|isbn=978-1-948473-22-4|pages=191–|quote=After May 1961 Chinese troops occupied Dehra Compass}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wirzhu5EaqAC&pg=PA75 |title=India's Ad Hoc Arsenal |last=Smith |first=Chris |year=1994 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=75}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BnAD5RIZtF4C|title=India's Quest for Security: Defence Policies, 1947-1965|last1=Kavic|first1=Lorne J.|year=1967|publisher=University of California Press|page=169|quote=Shortly thereafter Chinese troops occupied Dehra Compass}}</ref>

== Kompas La ==
[[File:Aksai Chin Sino-Indian border map.png|thumb|right|300px|Map including Dehra Compass]]
'''Kompas La''' or '''Dehra La''' ({{zh|c=迪拉山口}}) is the pass through a nearby [[Spur (topography)|mountain spur]]. Historically the pass was to the south reached an elevation of {{convert|18160|ft|m}}.<ref name="trotter"/> Present day, the vehicle accessible gravel road routed to the east, while still one of the highest in the world, only reaches elevation of {{convert|5476|m|ft}},<ref>{{Cite web
| title = Kompas La
| work = dangerousroads.org
| access-date = 1 January 2020
| url = https://www.dangerousroads.org/asia/china/8117-kompas-la.html
| quote = Kompas La is a high mountain pass at an elevation of 5.476m (17,965ft) ... The road to the summit, also known as Dehra Compass, is gravel, rocky, tippy and bumpy at times.
}}</ref> serving the Chinese [[border outpost]] of [[Heweitan]] to the west.{{fact|date=January 2020}}

{{multiple image
| align = left
| width = 225
| image1 = Map India and Pakistan 1-250,000 Tile NI 44-5 Shyok.jpg
| alt1 =
| caption1 = Map including Dehra Compas (camping ground) ([[Army Map Service|AMS]], 1955){{efn|name=delin|From map: "THE DELINEATION OF INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARIES ON THIS MAP MUST NOT BE CONSIDERED AUTHORITATIVE"}}
| image2 = Ni-44-5-shyok-jammu and kashmir-china.pdf
| alt2 =
| caption2 = Map including Dehra Compas Camping Ground ([[Defense Intelligence Agency|DIA]], 1967)
}}
{{clear}}
==See also==
* [[List of locations in Aksai Chin]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Mountain passes of China}}

[[Category:Mountain passes of Xinjiang]]
[[Category:Areas occupied by China through the Sino-Indian War]]
[[Category:Aksai Chin]]

Dehra Compass - Revision history

->Monkbot at 12:35, 13 December 2020