Mechuka or Menchukha is a town, assembly constituency and subdivision, situated above sea level in the Menchukha Valley of Yargyap Chu/

Siyom River The Siyom River is a right bank tributary of the Brahmaputra (Dihang or Siang) in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. The Siyom rises on the south of the main ridge of the Assam Himalaya not far from the border with Tibet. The Siyom initiall ...

Shi Yomi district Shi Yomi district is one of the 23 Districts of Arunachal Pradesh, districts of Arunachal Pradesh state in northeastern India. Shi-Yomi district was created on 9 December 2018 by dividing the West Siang district when northern areas along the Chin ...

Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northeast India. It was formed from the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and India declared it as a state on 20 February 1987. Itanagar is its capital and la ...

state of India. Before the 1950s, Mechuka valley was known as Pachakshiri. The

Line of Actual Control The Line of Actual Control (LAC), in the context of the Sino-Indian border dispute, is a notional demarcation lineAnanth KrishnanLine of Actual Control , India-China: the line of actual contest, 13 June 2020: "In contrast, the alignment of ...

( McMahon Line) on the India-Tibet border, 29 km north of Menchukha, separates Indian territory and Chinese territory. Mechukha has an ALG airstrip and is also reachable by one of the strategic

India-China Border Roads Chinese Indian or Indian Chinese may refer to: * China–India relations China and India maintained peaceful relations for thousands of years, but their relationship has varied since the Chinese Communist Party's victory in the Chinese Civil ...

. It is located 47 km northwest of the district head office, Tato, and 187 km north of

Aalo Aalo, formerly Along, is a census town and headquarters of the West Siang district of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. It is located from Likabali, which is at the border of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. It is also an Advance Landing Gr ...

Background

Etymology

The name ''Men-chu-kha'' means medicinal water of snow where ''men'' is medicine, while ''me'' refers to fire, ''chu'' is water and ''kha'' means ice in the local language, thus the difference in meaning of the two different names as per local belief.".

History

Menchukha is part of Arunachal Pradesh state of India. Prior to the construction of the modern road, the only access to the village was via an airstrip, used by the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

to supply goods to local people. During those times, Membas (adi)ramo people used to trade with Tibet like Mithun for salt and medicines. Horses were their main means of travelling. People often sell horses for money, those time who used to have lots of cattle were regarded as rich.

Politics

Menchukha is an election constituency of

Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly The Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly is the unicameral state legislature of Arunachal Pradesh state in north-eastern India. The seat of the Legislative Assembly is at Itanagar, the capital of the state. The Legislative Assembly comprise ...

. As of June 2024, the MLA elected from Mechuka constituency is Pasang Dorjee Sona.

Demographics

Menchukha/Mechukha Valley is home to the people of the

Memba The Memba are a people of Arunachal Pradesh. The Memba population is currently around four to five thousand. Local genealogies suggested that they came from Tibet and settled in the region several centuries ago. The Membas follow Nyingmapa Ti ...

and

Adi people The Adi people are one of the most populous groups of indigenous peoples in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. A few thousand are also found in the Tibet Autonomous Region, where they are called the Lhoba together with some of the Nyishi peopl ...

. Other local people include the Tagin tribes. The current MLA (August-2016) of Mechuka constituency is Pasang Dorjee Sona. Religions practised in the valley include Nyingmapa Buddhism,

Donyi-Polo Donyi Polo is the designation given to the indigenous religion, of animistic and shamanic type, of the Tani and other Indo-Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan peoples of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam in Northeast India. The name "Donyi-Polo" means "Sun- ...

ism, and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

. Mechukha is known for both its religious and historical significance. The 400-year-old Samten Yongcha monastery of

Vajrayana ''Vajrayāna'' (; 'vajra vehicle'), also known as Mantrayāna ('mantra vehicle'), Guhyamantrayāna ('secret mantra vehicle'), Tantrayāna ('tantra vehicle'), Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, is a Mahāyāna Buddhism, Mahāyāna Buddhis ...

Buddhism is a contemporary of the much-revered

Tawang Monastery Tawang Monastery is a Buddhist monastery located in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh, India. It is the largest monastery in the country. It is situated in the valley of the Tawang Chu, in close proximity to the Chinese and Bhutanese border. Tawang ...

. The languages spoken in Mechuka are

Tshangla Tshangla is a Sino-Tibetan language of the Bodish branch closely related to the Tibetic languages. Tshangla is primarily spoken in Eastern Bhutan and acts as a lingua franca in the region; it is also spoken in the adjoining Tawang tract in the ...

Adi Adi or ADI may refer to: Abbreviations * Acceptable daily intake, in health and medicine * Acting detective inspector, a type of police inspector * Africa Development Indicators, a compilation of data assembled by the World Bank * Alternating ...

, Tagin, Hindi, and English. There is no evidence of Tshangla still being spoken in Menchukha Valley. Instead, the people speak Memba, which is a Bodish language made up of a mixture of various Bodic varieties (dwags-po, kong-po, brag-gsum mtsho-'khor), East Bodish Tawang Monpa, Tshangla and some Tani loans. Some Memba people still speak Tawang Monpa. In and around the periphery of Mechukha town and especially Mechukha Circle, population is dominated by Memba tribe. The largest tribe of the Shi Yomi district is (Adi) Bokar, mainly residing in the Monigong circle, Memba inhabiting the valleys of Mechukha, limbo and Ramo inhabiting the Tato circle; most of the people speak Adi in the Shi Yomi district after that member and then tagin.

Transport

Mechuka Airport

The Indian Air Force maintains an airstrip, known as the Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) in Mechukha. The airstrip is used frequently to bring in vital supplies from cities in Assam via Antonov-32 aircraft and helicopters. The runway was renovated, strengthened, upgraded to a concrete runway and extended to 4,700 feet in 2017 by the government. The area has a significant military presence, which also creates some employment opportunities for civilians. There is a twice a week helicopter service under the

UDAN ''Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik'' (Hindi for "Let the common citizens of the country fly"), known by its acronym ''UDAN-RCS'' ('Udan' is Hindi for "flight") is a regional airport development program of the Government of India and part of the Regio ...

scheme on Monday and Saturday.

Government of Arunachal Pradesh The Government of Arunachal Pradesh or Arunachal Pradesh Government, abbreviated as GoAR, is the Administrative division, state government of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. It consists of an executive branch, executive, led by the Gover ...

has invited bids from the private airlines to operate a 9-seater fixed-wing air service which will not be under the UDAN scheme (c. May 2018).Arunachal Pradesh plans fixed-wing flight service to Mechuka, closest to China border

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...

, 15 May 2018. On 3 Jun 2019, An Indian Air Force Plane Carrying 13 went missing after taking off From Assam toward this airport.Air Force Plane Carrying 13 Missing After Taking Off From Assam
/ref> The wreckage of this aircraft was found in Siang circle sometime on 11 June 2019 and has been confirmed to District officials by IAF. The wreckage was spotted by an MI17 helicopter that was on search & rescue mission since last 8 days.

Highways

Mechukha has recently been connected by a strategic road to Tato and Aalo (formerly called Along), leading to increased development in the area. Mechukha has since become a subdivisional headquarters. The proposed Mago-

Thingbu Thingbu is a settlement in Tawang district in the north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-la ...

to Vijaynagar Arunachal Pradesh Frontier Highway along the McMahon Line, (will intersect with the proposed East-West Industrial Corridor Highway) and will pass through Mechuka, alignment map of which can be see
here
an
here

Tourism

Mechukha is gradually becoming a popular tourist destination in Arunachal Pradesh due to its scenic beauty, exotic tribes, gentle hills and snow-capped mountains and

(locally known as Yargyap Chu). The Siyom River, which flows through Mechukha also provides a scenic view in the valley. The major tourist attraction here is a 400-year-old Buddhist Monastery, which is located at a hilltop in the westernmost part of Mechukha. Numerous ancient statues can also be found here. Accommodations are available at Tourist lodges and Inspection Bungalow and a few hotels are also coming up to meet the increasing influx of tourists from the country and abroad. The people of Adi tribe have resided in the Menchukha valley since time immemorial in the periphery of Mechukha valley in the villages of Gapo, Pauk, Padusa, Lipusi, Hiri, Purying, Rapum, Charung, Rego and Kart gumjipang, barang gang, shorang dhem, etc. A new giant

flying squirrel Flying squirrels (scientifically known as Pteromyini or Petauristini) are a tribe (biology), tribe of 50 species of squirrels in the family (biology), family Squirrel, Sciuridae. Despite their name, they are not in fact capable of full flight i ...

was discovered and described from the area by noted naturalist of North East India Dr.

Anwaruddin Choudhury Anwaruddin Choudhury (born 1959 in Shillong, Meghalaya) is an Indian ornithologist, mammalogist, and wildlife conservation specialist with a focus on North-East India. His work spans decades of research, field studies, and policy advocacy. He ...

, who named Mechuka's giant flying squirrel '' Petaurista mechukaensis''. The IUCN RedList has classified it as a Data Deficient species.

References

External links

{{Geographic location, Centre = Arunachal Pradesh , North = {{flagicon, PRC

Tibet Autonomous Region The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), often shortened to Tibet in English or Xizang in Pinyin, Hanyu Pinyin, is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People's Republic of China. It was established in 1965 to replace the ...

, China , Northeast = , East = {{flagicon, Burma

Kachin State Kachin State (; Jingpho language, Kachin: ) is the northernmost administrative divisions of Myanmar, state of Myanmar. It is bordered by China to the north and east (Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet and Yunnan, respectively), Shan State to the sou ...

, Burma , Southeast = {{flagicon, Burma

Sagaing Region Sagaing Region (, ; formerly Sagaing Division) is an administrative divisions of Myanmar, administrative region of Myanmar, located in the north-western part of the country between latitude 21° 30' north and longitude 94° 97' east. It is border ...

, Burma , South =

Nagaland Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...

, Southwest =

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

, West = {{flagicon, Bhutan

Eastern Zone Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...

, Bhutan , Northwest = Cities and towns in Shi Yomi district