>Kautilya3 at 22:25, 10 May 2021

2021-05-10T22:25:22Z

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{{short description|Mountain pass between Sikkim, India and Tibet}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2019}}
{{Refimprove|date=December 2015}}
{{Infobox mountain pass
| name = Jelep La
| photo = Jelep-la-tibetan-frontier-1936.jpg
| photo_caption = ''Jelep La Tibetan Frontier'' by [[Nicholas Roerich]]
|map = Tibet
| elevation_m = 4270
| elevation_ref =
| traversed =
| location = [[India]] ([[Sikkim]]) – [[China]] ([[Tibet Autonomous Region]])
| range = [[Himalaya]]
| coords = {{coord|27.367194|N|88.865747|E|type:pass|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
| topo =
}}
{{chinese
|s=则里拉山口
|t=則里拉山口
|p=zélǐlā shānkǒu
}}
'''Jelep La''' or '''Jelep Pass''' (also spelled '''Jelap'''), elevation {{convert|4,267|m|ft|disp=or|abbr=on}}, is a high [[mountain pass]] between [[East Sikkim District]], [[Sikkim]], [[India]] and [[Tibet Autonomous Region]], [[China]]. It is on a route that connects [[Lhasa]] to India. The pass is about {{cvt|4|km|mi}} south of [[Nathu La]] and although it is higher, Jelep has been used for centuries by traders because of its less rugged terrain. The [[Menmecho Lake]] lies below the Jelep La.

Jelep-la, a Tibetan name, means "The lovely level pass, so called because it is the easiest and most level of all the passes between Tibet and Sikkim."<ref>{{cite book|first1=L. S. S.|last1=O'Malley|title=Bengal District Gazetteer : Darjeeling|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LhOzszXcM9UC|year=1907|publisher=Concept Publishing Company|isbn=978-81-7268-018-3|page=215}}</ref>

== Geography ==
On the Indian side there are two routes to Jelep La, one through [[Gangtok]] and the other through [[Kalimpong]].

The Kalimpong route is an ancient one which was responsible for the boost in the local economy due to the trading of wool and furs early last century. It passes through the towns of [[Rongli]], [[Rhenock]], [[Pedong]], [[Algarah]], in Sikkim and northern [[West Bengal]].

The route from Gangtok passes through the towns of Sherathang, nearby [[Lake Tsongmo|Changu lake]] and alongside [[Nathu La]] and through Kupup.

The route is scenic with forests of [[rhododendron]]s blooming in spring. Numerous hamlets are scattered in the surrounding area. On the Tibetan side the pass leads to the Chumbi Valley of the Tibetan Plateau.

==History==
Jelep La was in use from early times as trade flourished between India and Tibet.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}} After the appropriation of India by the British, the latter started to construct roads into Sikkim around 1884.<ref>{{cite book|last=Paget|first=William Henry|title=Frontier and overseas expeditions from India|publisher=Indian Army Intelligence Branch|url=https://archive.org/details/frontieroverseas04indi|year=1907|page=[https://archive.org/details/frontieroverseas04indi/page/42 42]}}</ref> This was viewed with some apprehension among the Tibetans and in 1886 a small Tibetan militia occupied the region around the pass. In May 1888, they attacked the British but were warded off by a [[Sikkim Expedition|British Expeditionary Force]]. Later in September the same year the British regained control of the area around the pass.

With the growing [[Russia]]n influence in Tibet, a British expedition was sent via Jelep La to Lhasa in 1904 led by Colonel [[Francis Younghusband]]. This expedition was met by hostile Tibetan forces which were defeated by the British. A trade agreement was then forced on the Tibetans in the absence of the [[13th Dalai Lama]], who had fled to [[Mongolia]].

In 1910, to escape a Chinese invasion, the 13th Dalai Lama "accompanied by six ministers and a small escort" which included his close aide, diplomat and military figure [[Tsarong Dzasa]], fled via Jelep La<ref>[http://www.dalailama.com/biography/the-dalai-lamas#13 The Thirteenth Dalai Lama, Thupten Gyatso] {{webarchive|url=https://www.webcitation.org/6AcwVMyEB?url=http://www.dalailama.com/biography/the-dalai-lamas |date=2012-09-12 }}, ''dalailama.com''</ref> to [[Sikkim]] and Darjeeling, where they stayed almost two years. During this period he was invited to [[Calcutta]] by the [[Viceroy]], [[Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto|Lord Minto]], which helped restore relations with the British.<ref>{{citation |last=Chapman |first=F. Spencer |title=Lhasa – The Holy City |publisher=Readers Union Ltd. |location=London |year=1940 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.33679 |via=archive.org}}</ref>

After India's independence in 1947, Sikkim, which was then a monarchy, agreed to a special protectorate status and gave India the status of a suzerain nation and its defence and foreign affairs were managed by India. After the Chinese invasion of [[Tibet]] in 1950 and suppression of the Tibetan uprising in 1959, the passes into Sikkim became a conduit for refugees from Tibet before being closed by the Chinese. During the 1962 [[Sino-Indian War]], there were border skirmishes between the Indian and Chinese armed forces in and around the passes of Jelep La and [[Nathu La]] - this was despite Sikkim still being a separate Kingdom at that stage. After the war the two passes were closed.<ref>http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-07-25/news/52026486_1_india-bhutan-tibet-trade-route-jelep-la</ref><ref>http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/will-india-and-china-fight-a-war-again_801878.html</ref>

Sikkim became a part of India in early 1975 following a referendum. With the recent thawing in relations between India and China, plans are afoot to reopen the Jelep La (following the July{{nbsp}}6, 2006 reopening of the Nathu La) which is projected to result in an economic boom for the region.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Harris, Tina (2013). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=RU58AAAAQBAJ Geographical Diversions: Tibetan Trade, Global Transactions]''. University of Georgia Press, United States. {{ISBN|0820345733}}.

{{Mountain passes of China}}
{{Mountain passes of India}}

[[Category:Mountain passes of Sikkim]]
[[Category:Mountain passes of Tibet]]
[[Category:China–India border crossings]]
[[Category:Yadong County]]
[[Category:Mountain passes of the Himalayas]]
[[Category:East Sikkim district]]

Jelep La - Revision history

>Kautilya3 at 22:25, 10 May 2021