How do new tehsils, districts for Ladakh address political aspirations?

Two major socio-religious groupings, the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), spearheaded a major campaign for statehood and Sixth Schedule inclusion. File. | Photo credit: ANI

Story so far: Ladakh, which was carved out as a Union Territory (UT) without a legislature in 2019 from the erstwhile state of J&K, is set to extend the benefits of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) Act to all the seven newly created districts through relevant legal provisions. In addition, 17 newly created tehsils were announced, bringing the total number of tehsils in the cold desert region to 32. Till 2019, Ladakh included only two districts, Leh and Kargil. Five new districts of Sham, Nubra, Changthang, Zanskar and Drass were announced in April this year.

What is the LAHC Act?

The law, which was introduced in 1997, envisages an elected council based on the state legislative councils in the country. The law said that each council would have local residents chosen by direct election based on a 26-seat vote. The administration is authorized to nominate a maximum of four persons from among religious minorities and women. The council under the Act has executive powers to decide on land use, formulation of development programmes, review of development plans and schemes, formulation and finalization of budget (plan and non-plan) etc. These councils also had powers to levy taxes, set up toll booths, deck tax, pilgrimage tax, falconry and feriwala taxes etc. Once established, the LAHDC local body will administer all district taxes in the Act with a sense of local participation.

What is the need for new districts and tehsils?

The Ladakh administration, headed by Lt. Gen. Vinai Kumar Saxena, pushed for new measures such as new districts and tehsils as part of administrative reforms aimed at strengthening local governance. It argued that these initiatives will bring government services closer to the people, reduce travel for citizens living in remote villages, and boost infrastructure and development across the regions, especially the remote districts of Zanskar, Drass, Nubra, Changthang and Sham. Ladakh is spread over 59,146 square kilometers with a sparse population of only 2.74 lakh, according to the 2011 census. Each area is hundreds of kilometers apart and the locals live at high altitudes of up to 16,000 feet, challenging the governance model. Each district in Ladakh has unique challenges. Ladakh is home to two communities that include Shia Muslims and Buddhists. According to the 2011 census, Ladakh has a total population of 2.74,000, of which 46% are Muslims and 39% are Buddhists. However, KDA leader Sajjad Kargili has expressed concern over the division of both districts and tehils, saying it is biased in favor of Buddhists. He said 12 new tehsils have been allotted to erstwhile Leh district against five in erstwhile Kargil district. The KDA also expressed concern that there would be only two Muslim-majority constituencies in the region as against five Buddhist-majority constituencies.

Why is the center introducing new measures for Ladakh?

Ladakh has seen major street protests in the last five years. Local residents have expressed concern over foreigners settling in Ladakh and diluting its culture, language and stressing the land in violation of environmental norms. Two major socio-religious groupings, the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), spearheaded a major campaign for statehood and Sixth Schedule inclusion. In addition to these civil society groups, climate activist and innovator Sonam Wangchuk also protested the demands. Violent street protests erupted in September 2025 over these demands. The violence left four civilians dead and about 90 injured. Later, Wangchuk, who was on hunger strike, was also arrested. The unrest forced the Home Ministry’s sub-committee of the High-Powered Committee, comprising representatives of the Union Home Ministry and Ladakh’s LAB and KDA, to speed up negotiations.

What is the status of Centre-Ladakh talks?

Talks between MHA officials and Ladakh representatives witnessed a major breakthrough on May 22 this year. The talks resulted in a jointly agreed proposal, highlighting a broad consensus on protecting Ladakh’s land, culture and identity while promoting inclusive development. He called for the adaptation of a sui generis model which is most suitable for Ladakh and will be adopted under the provisions of Article 371. The approved proposal envisaged a model of constitutional guarantees with reference to Article 371 (A to J). It included the powers and functions, executive financial and legislative, of this elected body at the UT level in harmonious relations with the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). This will be followed by the Transactional Trading Rules, which will be discussed in the coming months. The MHA proposal also accepted that the next step would be to further empower the Union Territory through a democratic institutional framework that provides a political voice and unanimously decided that while statehood remains a long-term aspiration of Ladakh, a suitable adapted governance model will be created in the current situation with an elected body at the UT level with executive financial and legislative powers.

Published – 15 Jul 2026 08:26 IST