Western Himalayas

The Western Himalayas are the western half of the Himalayas, in northwesternIndia, far-western Nepal and northern Pakistan. Western Himalayas mainly span from Pakistan through northern India (Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand), and regions like Dolpa, Mustang and Humla in Nepal. Four of the five tributaries of the Indus River in Punjab (Beas, Chenab, Jhelum, and Ravi) rise in the Western Himalayas; while the fifth, the Sutlej, cuts through the range after rising in Tibet Autonomous Region of China

Included within the Western Himalayas are the Zanskar Range, the Pir Panjal Range, Gurans Himal, the Saipal Range and the Dhauladhar Range, and western parts of the Sivalik Range and the Great Himalayas. The highest point is Nanga Parbat (26,660 feet or 8,126 metres), at the northwestern end of the region. It is part of the Himalayanbiodiversity hotspot.

Climate in high altitudes of the Western Himalayas is poorly known due to the difficulties in maintaining observational networks. A historical name for a substantial proportion of the Western Himalayan range was the Punjab Hills.