Chewang Norphel (born 1935) is an Indian
civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing i ...
from
Ladakh
Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...
, who has built 15
artificial glaciers. He has earned the title of ''Ice Man''.
Early life and career
Coming from a middle-class family of
Leh
Leh () is a city in Indian-administered Ladakh in the Kashmir#Kashmir_dispute, disputed Kashmir region. The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the WP:TE ...
, Norphel went to
Amar Singh College in
Srinagar
Srinagar (; ) is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the tertiary ...
as a student of science. He completed a diploma course in civil engineering from
Lucknow
Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...
in 1960. In June 1960, he joined the rural development department of
Jammu and Kashmir in Ladakh as a civil engineer. He retired in 1995.
Artificial glaciers
In 1996, Norphel joined the ''Leh Nutrition Project'', a
non-governmental organisation
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
, as project manager for
watershed development.
Norphel noticed a small stream had frozen solid under the shade of a group of
poplar trees, though it flowed freely elsewhere in his yard. He realized the reason for this phenomenon: the flowing water was moving too quickly to freeze, while the sluggish trickle of water beneath the trees was slow enough to freeze. Based on this, he created artificial glaciers by diverting a river into a valley, slowing the stream by constructing checks. The artificial glaciers increase the
ground-water recharge, rejuvenating the spring and providing water for
irrigation
Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
. He constructed them at lower elevations, so that they melt earlier, expanding the growing season.
By 2012, Norphel had built 12 artificial glaciers. Norphel's largest glacier is the one at the Phuktsey village. It is 1,000 ft long, 150 ft wide and 4 ft in depth. It can supply water for the entire village of 700 people and cost Rs 90,000 to make.
Documentary
A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
film-maker
Aarti Shrivastava also directed a short film on his life titled ''
White Knight
A white knight is a mythological figure and literary stock character. They are portrayed alongside a black knight as diametric opposites. A white knight usually represents a heroic warrior fighting against evil, with the role in medieval literatu ...
'', which was screened at film festivals in
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
and abroad.
Awards
He is a recipient of the
Jamnalal Bajaj Award in 2010.
He was awarded
Padma Shri
The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...
, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 2015.
References
External links
Leh Nutrition Project*
*
*
*Gupta, Kanika (13 June 2024).
The Ice Man of Ladakh building artificial glaciers in the Himalayas. BBC. Retrieved 11 April 2025.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norphel, Chewang
People from Leh district
Indian civil engineers
Living people
1935 births
Recipients of the Padma Shri in other fields
Engineers from Jammu and Kashmir
20th-century Indian engineers
Science and technology in Ladakh