Ladakh’s beautiful mountains might be a paradise for tourists, but the locals have to struggle to meet their basic water needs every year. Chewang Norphel has come as a saviour of nature by putting his engineering skills to a better use and creating 15 artificial glaciers.His remarkably innovative technology in this cold and dry mountainous region is now providing the much needed water to several villages in Ladakh.
Chewang Norphel, a 79-year old retired civil engineer, has always been a solution provider. The story goes back to 1966 when he was posted in Zanskar, one of the most backward and remote areas in Ladakh, as Sub-Divisional Officer. He, along with his team, had to construct school buildings, bridges, canals and roads in that area.
The task was very difficult to execute due to lack of skilled labour. So he started doing the masonry work himself and trained a few villagers to help him. After some years,....
