In the words of MinakshiChaudhary in her book ‘Exploring Pangi Himalaya – A world beyond civilisation’,she remarks“If you want to avenge someone politically send them to the Pangi Valley”. An old saying inHimachal Pradesh that stands valid even today.This fearful feeling comes out of reluctance.Who wants to live in a snow - bound region,cut - off from the external world for more than sixmonths ? Moreover a family man from outside world has no business in the Pangi Valley.Pangi is a narrow valley in the middle Himalaya, sandwiched between the mighty Pir Panjalsand the Zanskar ranges.Avid Travellers use deep metaphors and adjectives to describe theregion ‘forlorn’, ‘Time and space acquire a new dimension in this land locked, snow boundvalley’ (Minakshi Chaudhary).Being snowbound for most of the year, lend to its semi arcticconditions rendering harsh living.To quote Dr.Hutchinson again “Every few miles the traveller reaches tolerably open nooksor surpassing beauty, which may have been small lakes in some gone by age, while the riverwas cutting its course.The interlink roads or paths from one village to the other till now areso narrow and dangerous that in several areas two people cannot cross each other and in other parts a person can only put his one feet on the path to cross the area.In some places precipice affords no space for any path, therefore the path had to be carved on the face of the cliff supported by iron bars fixed horizontally into the rock, elsewhere the path crosses from ledge to ledge by means of wooden narrow bridges of primitive and insecure kind, sometimes at a giddy height above the torrent.”
