Saach Pass

Sachche Pass
Sachche Pass
Saach Pass
Coordinates	33°00′22″N 76°14′24″E / 33.006°N 76.240°E

Sachche Pass ^[1] also known wrongly as sach pass is a 4,414-metre-high (14,482 ft) mountain pass in Chamba District, Himachal Pradesh, India on the Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas.^[2] It is 127 km (79 mi) from the District Headquarters. It connects the Chamba valley with the Pangi valleys of Himachal Pradesh, India. There is a helipad on the ascent towards Sach pass from Bairagarh of Himachal Pradesh.

Overview

The pass is open from June or early July^[3] to mid October. The road is narrow and unmetalled. It is the gateway to the Pangi Valley. It is the shortest and toughest route from Chamba to the Killar (170 km) and was newly constructed. Pangi is also accessible all the year round from Paddar valley (Jammu & Kashmir) but it is a longer route as one has to take the Chamba to Baderwah or Udhampur road in Jammu &Kashmir.

History

1998 Chamba massacre also took place at Satrundi & Kalaban when 35 Hindus and some buddhist, mostly labourers, were shot down by terrorists, and 11 were injured. They were working on the Saach Pass road. There was a lack of security but now whole area is under surveillance and is now getting more popular among trekkers and tourists.

Importance

It is the shortest route to Killar. With the completion of this road (Sach Pass) the distance from Pathankot to Leh via Saach pass has been reduced to 670 km while the distance from Pathankot to Leh via Manali is 800 km (497 mi). So this road can be used by Indian Army.

Distances

Sach pass can be reached from three directions, via Pathankot-Dalhousie road, Manali-Udaipur road, and Udhampur/Anantnag-Kishtwar-Paddar-Pangi road. The first is the shortest, more treacherous, and most popular route, given that the other routes are very long in comparison.

The distance of Sach Pass from a few major places on all three routes are below.