Ladakh is an ethnically Tibetan region of northern India. It is a small, but widely dispersed community of Tibetan Buddhists living a largely agrarian lifestyle. The region is currently undergoing dramatic change as a result of the continuing border tensions between India and China. A network of roads has been built throughout the mountainous region and the Indian government has targeted the area for economic development (largely tourism). This has disrupted the traditional agrarian lifestyle and drawn a great portion of the male population to Leh, the capital of the region, to serve the tourist industry. The more rural areas are, thereby, bankrupt of precious labor, particularly at harvest time, and there is an increasing dependence on food imported from the plains. Food and other commodities enter the region between late June and late September via a continuous stream of heavy diesel trucks traveling over two mountain passes between Ladakh and the rest of India. One positive result of this commerce has been the tremendous revenues earned by the Gompas (Buddhist monasteries) which is being used to refurbish and clean their ancient buildings.