 At age 13, he attracted the attention of a "kalon" (duke) of Ladakh, who took him to Leh for secondary education.Four years later, the First Kashmir War started, placing Ladakh in grave jeopardy from the raiders from Gilgit-Baltistan.Rinchen joined the Nubra Guards in 1948 and served in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 alongside Indian Army units.