To everyone’s surprise, Government of India recently announced, in one stroke, the creation of five new districts for Ladakh in addition to the existing two districts of Leh and Kargil. It was a historic decision as there was a hope only for two new districts—Zangskar and Nubra. There were no persistent demands for the creation of Drass, Sham and Changthang as separate districts.
Therefore, the BJP-led government deserves a word of congratulations from the people of Ladakh. However, on 26 August, 2024 when five new districts were declared, one did not find much jubilation among the people in Leh town, though it was natural for BJP workers to celebrate the decision.
Here, it is important to mention that before the year 1979, Ladakh constituted of a single district with its headquarters in Leh. Later, in response to demands from the people of Kargil, the Sheikh Abdullah-led state government bifurcated Ladakh into two districts: Leh and Kargil. After this, Zangskar was granted special Sub-Divisional status within the dominion of Kargil district. Prior to this, Zangskar was provided with a post of revenue officer called Tehsildar to administrate the region as it would remain disconnected from the rest of Ladakh for five to six months each year in the winter.
Now with the grant of five more districts, the question arises: What will be the shape and scope of the newly-created districts? Will these five districts have Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (LAHDCs) like the Hill Councils in Leh and Kargil? Or will they be subsidiary districts with a Deputy Commissioner and a Superintendent of Police? This sort of critical questions and discussions will emerge in the coming months as Government of India has asked the Administration of UT of Ladakh to look into the administrative implications, frame the necessary modalities, including creation of posts and location of the headquarters of respective districts, and estimate the required budgets for this exercise.
Needless to mention, Ladakh is a sparsely-populated region with harsh climatic conditions and bare mountains and a cold desert ecosystem. Over the years, the government has invested sufficient funds to uplift the living standards of the people of the region. However, due to limited government job opportunities for the educated youth of backward pockets in the region, they have not been able to compete with job aspirant from other parts of the region that have better facilities for studies and coaching etc. It is not surprising that the population from border areas of Leh district continues to shrink with people migrating to the affluent urban areas such as Leh. This situation impacts Leh town, and its residents are facing many challenges due to frequent traffic jams and increased environmental hazards and risks.
Over the last 25 years, a sea change has been observed in the functioning of the administration of Ladakh. After struggling for over five decades since India’s Independence, two Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils were created in 1995. Ironically, though the government granted LAHDC, headed by a Chief Executive Councillor and four Executive Councillors, it did not create an appreciable number of posts in government departments. Hence, dissatisfaction increased among the people and they started demanding a separate revenue or administrative division called Ladakh Division with the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state.
In response to various demands from the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, Government of India constituted a three-member team of interlocutors to study the administrative grievances of the people and finally a recommendation was included in the report by the interlocutors that Ladakh should be separated from Kashmir Division and be made a separate division. But there was no headway in this direction.
In this connection, I being an experienced retired government official, took up the issue to make Ladakh a separate division. As a humble citizen, I raised the issue of granting division status to Ladakh at the bi-annual colloquium of International Association of Ladakh Studies held at Heidelberg, Germany in 2013. My subsequent writings on the issue were published in the prestigious daily newspapers such as Daily Excelsior, Greater Kashmir, and Kashmir Times. In due course, Government of India finally granted divisional status to Ladakh in 2019. The process of creating Ladakh as a separate division was in motion when yet another resolution from Government of India was passed to make Ladakh a Union Territory in 2019.
Today, Ladakh is passing through multiple administrative and political upheavals. I do not anticipate that the creation of five more districts will satisfy the aspirations of the people of Ladakh. This includes Apex Body, Leh and Kargil Democratic Alliance that are spearheading the agitation for statehood to Ladakh, constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, two Lok Sabha and one Rajya Sabha seats for Ladakh, and a Ladakh Public Service Commission to fill vacancies in government departments. I see no reason why Government of India would consider granting statehood to Ladakh as there are already 10 Councillors in the LAHDCs in Leh and Kargil who enjoy ministerial status, drawing all facilities that are due to a cabinet minister in a state. However, it is not clear why Government of India is reluctant to bring Ladakh under the purview of Sixth Schedule of the Indian constitution. The people of Ladakh are among the most loyal citizens of the country who have been working hard for the unity and integrity of the country.
By Nawang Tsering Shakspo
Nawang Tsering Shakspo is Director of Centre for Research on Ladakh, Saboo