Mountain Passes of India
Every pass UPSC asks, from the Karakoram to the Palghat Gap, with the state-pairing traps.
Asked in exams
Actual questions from UPSC and state PCS papers that this map answers. The key detail column carries the correct fact behind each question.
| Exam | Question | Key detail |
|---|---|---|
| UPPCS | Aghil - Arunachal Pradesh: wrong | Aghil Pass is in the Karakoram, Ladakh |
| UPPCS | Chang La - J&K: a correct pair | before Ladakh became a UT |
| UPSC 1990 | Zoji La is a pass between: Kashmir valley and Ladakh | — |
| UPPCS | Which pass leads to Leh?: Zoji La | — |
| UPPCS | Zoji La: J&K | in the pass-state match lists; now in Ladakh UT |
| UPPCS | Banihal: Jammu & Kashmir | match list |
| UPPCS | Rohtang: Himachal Pradesh | — |
| UPPCS | Shipki La: Himachal Pradesh | — |
| UPPCS | West: East: Shipki La, Lipulekh, Nathu La, Bom Dila | — |
| UPPCS | Mana - Himachal Pradesh: wrong; Mana: Uttarakhand | Mana Pass is in Chamoli, Uttarakhand |
| UPPCS | Niti - Uttarakhand: the correct pair | — |
| UPPCS | Niti: Uttarakhand | match list |
| UPPCS | Muling La: Uttarakhand | match list |
| UPPCS | Lipulekh - Uttar Pradesh: the wrong pair | Lipulekh Pass is in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand |
| UPPCS | Lipulekh - Uttarakhand: correct | — |
| UPPCS | Nathu La is in which state?: Sikkim | — |
| UPPCS | Nathu La - Arunachal Pradesh / - Meghalaya: the wrong pair | — |
| UPPCS | Jelep La: Sikkim | match lists |
| UPPCS | Bum La: Arunachal Pradesh | match list |
| UPPCS | Sela - Uttarakhand: the wrong pair | Sela Pass is in Arunachal Pradesh |
| UPPCS | Bomdila: Arunachal Pradesh | — |
| UPPCS | Diphu - Ladakh: wrong | Diphu Pass is in Arunachal Pradesh, at the India-China-Myanmar tri-junction |
| UPPCS | Not a Western Ghats pass: Thal, Bhor, Khyber, Pal Ghat?: Khyber | — |
| UPPCS | Bhor Ghat - Himachal Pradesh: the wrong pair | Bhor Ghat is in Maharashtra, in the Western Ghats |
| UPSC 1990 | Palghat Gap lies between: the Nilgiris and the Anamalai hills | — |
| UPPCS | Palghat: Kerala | a correct pair, asked again and again |
| UPPCS | Khardung La: Ladakh | one of the highest motorable passes |
| UPPCS | Thal Ghat and Bhor Ghat: Western Ghats passes in Maharashtra | — |
| UPSC | Banihal Pass: connects the Kashmir valley with Jammu | Jawahar Tunnel passes through it |
About this map
The passes that connect valleys, states and countries, from Khunjerab to Palghat. Each marker names what the pass connects and which state or border it sits on.
Passes are asked as connectivity questions: which pass links Leh to the outside world (Zoji La), which connects Arunachal to Tibet (Bum La), which two states a peninsular gap separates (Palghat).
Border passes double as strategic questions: Nathu La and Shipki La for trade, Lipulekh for the pilgrimage route. Newsmaker passes (tunnels like Atal and Z-Morh) refresh the topic every few years.