Imagine a vehicle moving up a steep mountain with its ignition off!
A hill near picturesque Leh has magnetic properties which attracts metallic objects, making vehicles move up at a speed of about 20 km per hour with the engines off.
The “magnetic hill” is located on the Leh-Kargil-Baltik national highway, about 30 km from Leh, at a height of 14,000 feet above sea level. On its eastern side, flows the Sindhu, which originates in Tibet and goes to Pakistan.
A
group of journalists, visiting Leh to cover the Sindhu Darshan
festival, were surprised when they had a first-hand experience of the
hill.
The local administration has put up a billboard near the hill, stating that if a vehicle is stopped at a particular spot on the road and the engine is switched off, it will not slide down but move up.
When the Swaraj Mazda in which the journalists were travelling reached the particular point with the ignition switched off, the vehicle actually started moving upward at a speed of more than 20 km. Considering it to be a mere fluke, the journalists made the driver take the vehicle back to the same point. The same thing happened again. The exercise was repeated several times with the same result.
Locals and ITBP personnel, who man the Ladakh border with China, say that to escape the magnetic impact of the hill, helicopters and aircraft have to fly at a relatively greater height. Those aircraft which come into the radius of the hill face jerks similar to those witnessed during turbulence. A few kilometres from the hill is Gurdwara Patthar Sahib where Guru Gobind Singh, had meditated.
Maintained by the Army, the gurdwara is more of a place of prayer for the locals, Armymen and tourists. Not many Sikhs from other parts of the country visit it.
It is said when Guru Gobind Singh was meditating here, an evil spirit threw a rock from the hilltop at him. The rock did hit him, but Guru Gobind Singh was unhurt. However, the mark of the Guru was left on the rock which is still lying at the gurdwara.
The religious place remained unexplored for a long time and was developed only after the Army deputed its personnel for maintenance.
The hill is one of the several unique things in Ladakh. The hills and mountains in this region bear different colours.© 2010-2012 The Little Ganesha® All Rights Reserved.
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A hill near picturesque Leh has magnetic properties which attracts metallic objects, making vehicles move up at a speed of about 20 km per hour with the engines off.
The “magnetic hill” is located on the Leh-Kargil-Baltik national highway, about 30 km from Leh, at a height of 14,000 feet above sea level. On its eastern side, flows the Sindhu, which originates in Tibet and goes to Pakistan.
A
group of journalists, visiting Leh to cover the Sindhu Darshan
festival, were surprised when they had a first-hand experience of the
hill.The local administration has put up a billboard near the hill, stating that if a vehicle is stopped at a particular spot on the road and the engine is switched off, it will not slide down but move up.
When the Swaraj Mazda in which the journalists were travelling reached the particular point with the ignition switched off, the vehicle actually started moving upward at a speed of more than 20 km. Considering it to be a mere fluke, the journalists made the driver take the vehicle back to the same point. The same thing happened again. The exercise was repeated several times with the same result.
Locals and ITBP personnel, who man the Ladakh border with China, say that to escape the magnetic impact of the hill, helicopters and aircraft have to fly at a relatively greater height. Those aircraft which come into the radius of the hill face jerks similar to those witnessed during turbulence. A few kilometres from the hill is Gurdwara Patthar Sahib where Guru Gobind Singh, had meditated.
Maintained by the Army, the gurdwara is more of a place of prayer for the locals, Armymen and tourists. Not many Sikhs from other parts of the country visit it.
It is said when Guru Gobind Singh was meditating here, an evil spirit threw a rock from the hilltop at him. The rock did hit him, but Guru Gobind Singh was unhurt. However, the mark of the Guru was left on the rock which is still lying at the gurdwara.
The religious place remained unexplored for a long time and was developed only after the Army deputed its personnel for maintenance.
The hill is one of the several unique things in Ladakh. The hills and mountains in this region bear different colours.© 2010-2012 The Little Ganesha® All Rights Reserved.
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