GUWAHATI: Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has done something others holding a similar position can only wonder at.
The 40-year-old, who is a product of the Hindu College, voluntarily undertook an arduous journey by climbing mountains and walking through forested areas so that he could meet his people, a nomadic tribe. He trekked for 11 hours at a height of 14,500 feet and covered a distance of more than 24 km to reach the villagers of Luguthang.
“A 24 km trek, 11 hours of fresh air & Mother Nature at her best; crossing Karpu-La (16,000 ft) to Luguthang (14,500 ft) in Tawang district. A paradise untouched,” the CM tweeted.
Luguthang is a village which falls under Khandu’s Mukto constituency in Tawang district that shares its borders with China and Bhutan. The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said during Khandu’s journey up to the village, he was accompanied by only one personal security officer and some villagers.
“The CM sir had never been to the village. So, he went there to meet the locals. He spent two nights at the house of a villager and trekked back his way home on September 8,” an officer of the CMO told this newspaper.
He said the locals belong to a nomadic tribe and they rear yak. As in most remote areas of the Himalayan state, there are no roads leading up to the village which is towards Bhutan.
According to the 2011 census, Luguthang is located in Thingbu Tehsil of Tawang district. It is located 63 km from Jang and 97 km away from district headquarters Tawang. It has a population of only 58 people who live in 11 houses. Tawang is the nearest town, perched on a mountain some 97 km away.
Khandu is the eldest son of former CM Dorjee Khandu who had died in a helicopter crash in 2011. The site of the crash was near Luguthang village.