Latest news with #LadakhAutonomousHillDevelopmentCouncils
Indian Express
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
In Ladakh, Centre's notifications go a long way in addressing demands of people
Since 2019 and the bifurcation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, the leaders from the Union Territory of Ladakh have demanded constitutional protections for land ownership, economic opportunities, preserving tribal cultures and languages, and a more representative government. Each of these clusters of demands is rooted in the unique historical and demographic profile of the region, and the promise — both explicit and implicit — at the time of the abrogation of Article 370 was that they would be addressed. Earlier this week, a slew of notifications by the central government moved the needle significantly on many of the demands from Ladakh, especially around domicile-based government jobs, protection and promotion of languages and quotas. Welcome as they are, these orders should be followed in due course by measures that ensure a deepening of representative democracy in Ladakh and assuage some of the anxieties around land rights. The Ladakh Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment (Amendment) Regulation introduces a domicile requirement for government jobs: To be eligible, a person must have resided in Ladakh for 15 years or appeared in Class X or Class XII examinations in the UT. The Union Territory of Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Regulation has placed a cap of 85 per cent on reservation, excluding the EWS quota. This, in effect, provides nearly blanket reservation for local people (the UT has a 90 per cent Scheduled Tribe population). The Centre has also recognised English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi as official languages of the Union Territory, in addition to facilitating other mechanisms for promoting and protecting the region's culture and heritage. Bhoti and Purgi are spoken by a majority of the population, and their long-delayed recognition has been a demand for many years. There is no gainsaying the fact that the Centre and the armed forces have — and will continue to have — a deep interest and presence in Ladakh. The UT borders both Pakistan and China and has been a military flashpoint with both countries — in Kargil with Pakistan in 1999, and the border clashes with China from 2020 to 2024. In addition, vast swathes of land in the region are important for the country's renewable energy goals. These imperatives, however, cannot negate the underlying principles of democracy. The demand from many in Ladakh was the area's inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution — like parts of the Northeast — which allows for significant autonomy. The Centre, on its part, has sought to provide protections through its orders. But it does not seem to have engaged with the demand for restrictions on people from outside owning land. Even more glaring in its absence is a greater devolution of powers to the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (LAHDCs). Currently, these local elected bodies have no legislative powers and few administrative ones. Ladakh, like the rest of the erstwhile state of J&K, deserves some form of representative government. As the Centre and the local leadership negotiate the next steps on the political architecture for the UT, giving its people a voice should be paramount.
Time of India
03-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Centre OKs 85% quota for locals in jobs in Ladakh
NEW DELHI: Conceding the longstanding demands of Ladakhi people for safeguarding their economic rights as well as cultural and linguistic identity, the Centre on Tuesday introduced new reservation and domicile policy for the Union Territory, guaranteeing 85% quota to locals in jobs while also reserving one-third seats for women in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils. English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi languages were notified as official languages of Ladakh, with new regulation also requiring boosting institutional mechanisms for promoting native languages like Shina (Dardic), Brokskat (Dardic), Balti and Ladakhi. Ladakh Autonomous Council to reserve 33% of seats for women Centre's move seeks to assuage the sentiments of Ladakh's native population that had been demanding constitutional safeguards to protect their language, culture and land after the special status of the erstwhile state of J&K, which included Ladakh, under Article 370 was abrogated in 2019, and Ladakh hived off into a separate Union Territory. Though short of their demand for Ladakh's inclusion in Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, the 85% reservation for local Ladakhis in govt jobs and seats in professional institutions, was worked out in consultations held by a high-powered committee led by junior home minister Nityanand Rai, with civil society organisations from Ladakh. The safeguards for Ladakh finally implemented on Tuesday, are contained in a set of three separate regulations promulgated by the President of India on Monday. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Sanitize & Smooth Clothes Fast with Philips Steamer Philips Garment Steamers Shop Now Undo The UT of Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Bill Regulation, 2025 amends provisions of the parent J&K Reservation Act, 2004, to raise the cap on total reservation in jobs and professional institutions in Ladakh to 85%, excluding the 10% quota for economically weaker sections. The Ladakh Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment (Amendment) Regulation, 2025, defines the conditions for domicile status: anyone who has resided in Ladakh for 15 years, or who has studied for seven years and appeared in Class 10 or 12 examination in a school located in UT, or whose parents are central govt officers who served in UT for 10 years. Children or spouses of Ladakhis fulfilling the 15-year domicile condition will also get domicile status. The procedure for grant of domicile certificate, notified in a separate set of rules, makes tehsildar the competent authority to issue domicile certificates; an officer appointed by the UT administrator will do the same for the children of central govt officers with 10-year service in Ladakh. The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (LAHDC) Regulation 2025, notified on Tuesday, states that "not less than one-third of the total number of seats in the council shall be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different territorial constituencies". The move is in line with spirit of the Nari Shakti Vandan Act, which provides for 33% quota to women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies. Ladakh has two autonomous hill development councils - one each for Leh and Kargil. Centre had assured a delegation from Ladakh in Dec 2023 that it was committed to fast-tracking the development of UT and meeting aspirations of the people in the region. Subsequently, an HPC for Ladakh was constituted under Nityanand Rai. In Aug 2024, Centre created five new districts in Ladakh - Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang.
Time of India
03-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
In Ladakh, 85% job quota for locals
The Centre has introduced new reservation and domicile policies for Ladakh, reserving 85% of jobs for locals and one-third of seats in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils for women. The Kargil Democratic Alliance and Apex Body Leh have welcomed these notifications as a positive step. Dialogue will continue regarding statehood and the implementation of the Sixth Schedule. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Srinagar: The Centre on Tuesday announced new reservation and domicile policies for Ladakh, reserving 85% jobs for locals and one-third of the total number of seats in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils for Kargil Democratic Alliance (KBL) and Apex Body Leh (ABL), which are fighting for implementation of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution in the Union Territory (UT), statehood, a separate public service commission and two Lok Sabha seats for Ladakh, welcomed the notifications as a welcome step in the right direction. They said dialogue for statehood and Sixth Schedule implementation will Centre's multiple notifications aimed at safeguarding the local interests of people in Ladakh spelt out changes in policies for reservation in jobs, autonomous councils, domicile and of the notifications on reservation specified that the total percentage of reservation for locals will not case exceed 85 per cent excluding economically weaker sections, for which it is 10 per cent. The new notifications also specified that those who have resided in Ladakh for a period of 15 years or studied for a period of seven years and appeared in class 10 or 12 examinations in an educational institution located in the UT shall be considered domicile of Ladakh for the purposes of appointment to any post under the UT or under a local or other authority other than cantonment another notification, the government said that in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils Act, 1997, not less than one-third of the total number of seats in the councils will be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different territorial constituencies. Besides making English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi the official languages of Ladakh, the government said English will continue to be used for all official purposes of the UT for which it was being used before the date of commencement of this regulation."This is a satisfactory decision by the government of India and they have done as was discussed in the meetings with us. Now one chapter is closed and we have been assured that dialogue on other demands will start within a month," said Chering Dorjay Lakruk of Democratic Alliance member Sajjad Kargili said, "Something is better than nothing. We now expect that a notification for jobs would be issued soon as well."The ABL and KDA held a meeting with the Centre in the last week of May in Delhi and now they have been assured that another meeting will be slotted in the last week of two bodies were formed in Leh and Kargil after 2019, when Ladakh was carved out as a separate Union territory from Jammu and Kashmir to strive for the rights of the people across the region. They joined hands and held a series of protest meetings in Ladakh, Jammu and December 2023, the Centre started talks with the two bodies which were stalled briefly and resumed after a series of protests the next year. Besides, in 2024, climate activist Sonam Wangchuk sat on a fast for several days demanding implementation of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution in Ladakh to preserve its environment, culture and natural resources. His movement greatly helped the cause of ABL and KDA. In August 2024, the Centre created five new districts in Ladakh.
Indian Express
03-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Explained: Centre's new regulations for jobs and domicile in Ladakh, where they fall short
The Centre has notified a series of regulations for Ladakh's land, jobs, and cultural preservation, aimed at addressing concerns raised by the civil society in Ladakh over the past five years. The new legal framework introduces a domicile-based job reservation system, recognition of local languages, and procedural clarity in civil service recruitment. What are the new regulations? On June 2 and 3, the government notified five regulations: 1. Ladakh Civil Services Decentralization and Recruitment (Amendment) Regulation, 2025 This regulation introduces a domicile requirement for recruitment in government posts under the Union Territory of Ladakh, for the first time. The domicile is defined as a person who has resided in Ladakh for 15 years; or a person who has studied for 7 years and appeared in either Class 10 or 12 examination in Ladakh; Children of Central Government employees who have served in Ladakh for at least 10 years; and children and spouses of domiciles. 2. Ladakh Civil Services Domicile Certificate Rules, 2025 These rules lay out the procedure and documentation required to obtain a domicile certificate. The tehsildar is designated as the issuing authority, while the Deputy Commissioner is the appellate authority. Applications can be submitted both physically and electronically. 3. Union Territory of Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Regulation, 2025 This regulation caps the total reservation for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), and other socially and educationally backward groups at 85%, excluding the 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). Importantly, these reservations have also been extended to professional institutions, such as engineering and medical colleges in Ladakh. The quota for SC, ST and OBC for admissions into these colleges was earlier capped at 50% and has now been expanded to 85%. 4. Ladakh Official Languages Regulation, 2025 This law recognises English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti, and Purgi as the official languages of Ladakh. It also mandates institutional support for the promotion of Shina, Brokskat, Balti, and Ladakhi, for preserving Ladakh's linguistic and cultural diversity. 5. Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (Amendment) Regulation, 2025 This amends the LAHDC Act of 1997 to reserve one-third of the seats for women in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils of Leh and Kargil, through rotation. Why are these regulations significant? This is the first comprehensive attempt by the Centre to tailor governance and administrative frameworks specifically for Ladakh, following its bifurcation from Jammu & Kashmir in 2019. Since the government is reluctant to grant Sixth Schedule status to Ladakh, which would result in greater autonomy under the Constitution, the regulations aim to address Ladakhi concerns through executive orders rather than constitutional guarantees. By defining the domicile criteria and creating a legal filter for recruitment, the government has taken a significant step towards reserving jobs for the local population, a demand that has been at the heart of the protest movement. Additionally, the language regulation offers long-awaited recognition to Bhoti and Purgi, which are mother tongues for large sections of the population. The promotion of Ladakhi, Balti, and other minority dialects reflects an understanding of the importance of cultural identity in political demands. Since the abrogation of Article 370 and the enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the political and legal status of Ladakh has been a deeply contentious subject. With the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir being bifurcated into two UTs — Jammu & Kashmir with a legislature, and Ladakh without one — the people of Ladakh found themselves under direct central administration. What followed was not a celebration, but concern. Despite assurances from the Centre, residents feared that without constitutional protections, Ladakh's unique tribal identity, fragile ecology, and limited resources would come under pressure from external economic and demographic forces. This led to a growing demand for the inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule, which provides tribal-majority areas in certain northeastern states with legislative and financial autonomy through autonomous district councils. The demand is grounded in the fact that more than 90% of Ladakh's population belongs to Scheduled Tribes. The demand has been consistently voiced by the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA), which jointly represent the Buddhist and Muslim communities in the region. In 2024 and 2025, the movement gained national visibility thanks to a high-profile hunger strike led by Sonam Wangchuk, an engineer, innovator and climate activist. How are the new regulations different from existing provisions? Before these regulations, Ladakh was governed largely by adapted versions of laws in J&K, including the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004 and the Civil Services Decentralization and Recruitment Act, 2010. These did not include any concept of domicile specific to Ladakh, protection for jobs for locals, clear reservation caps or exclusions for EWS, and recognition of Ladakhi languages in official use. In that sense, the 2025 regulations represent a departure from borrowed laws and a move towards region-specific governance. How do they compare with Jammu & Kashmir's protections? After bifurcation, the UT of Jammu & Kashmir received: In contrast, Ladakh: So, while these regulations bring Ladakh somewhat closer to the protections given to Jammu & Kashmir post-2019, the region still lags behind in constitutional safeguards. What are the limitations of these regulations? Despite being an important step, the regulations fall short of addressing certain core demands of the Sixth Schedule movement: 1. Lack of constitutional protection: All new rules and regulations have been made under Article 240 of the Constitution, which allows the President to make regulations for UTs without the legislature. These are executive decisions that can be amended or withdrawn by the Centre at any time, unlike the Sixth Schedule, which is part of the Constitution and offers guaranteed protections. 2. No land safeguards: The most critical omission is the absence of any restriction on land ownership by non-domiciles. This is a key issue in Ladakh, given concerns over large-scale tourism, infrastructure projects, and climate vulnerability. 3. No local legislature or council with law-making powers: The Sixth Schedule allows for the creation of Autonomous District Councils with powers over land, forests, customs, education, and more. The LAHDCs, even with one-third seats now reserved for women, remain administrative bodies without legislative power. 4. Symbolic cultural protection: While local languages have been recognised, there is no roadmap for their official use in education, governance, or the judiciary. KDA leader Sajjad Kargili expressed partial satisfaction with the new regulations. 'Something is better than nothing. There was a huge pressure from the public due to rising unemployment. We hope that the government will also now quickly notify vacancies and fill up posts so that the frustration of youth is addressed,' Kargili told The Indian Express. He, however, said the Ladakhi civil society will continue to push for inclusion in the Sixth Schedule. 'Our demand is that the domicile condition should be 30 years and not 15 years. Also, the new provisions do not address our concerns over land and environment. There is no protection for land in the new regulations. Also, our key demand has been representative politics through the creation of an Assembly. So, these regulations are welcome, but they are only baby steps,' he said. Sources said the Ladakh delegations will meet representatives of the Ministry of Home Affairs next month, and all pending issues will be discussed. 'In our past meetings with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, we have been assured that all issues will be discussed,' Kargili said. Rishika Singh is a Senior sub-editor at the Explained Desk of The Indian Express. She enjoys writing on issues related to international relations, and in particular, likes to follow analyses of news from China. Additionally, she writes on developments related to politics and culture in India. ... Read More
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Business Standard
03-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Ladakh announces new domicile, job reservation and language policies
The government on Tuesday announced new reservation and domicile polices for the Union Territory of Ladakh, reserving 85 per cent jobs for locals and one-third of the total number of seats in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils for women. English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi languages have been made the official languages in Ladakh. The move is aimed at safeguarding local interests as people in Ladakh have been protesting for constitutional safeguards to protect their language, culture and land after the special status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 was abrogated in 2019. The changes in the policies for reservation in jobs, autonomous councils, domicile and languages will come into effect from Tuesday, according to multiple notifications issued by the government. Under the new rules, those who have resided for a period of 15 years in the UT or studied for a period of seven years and appeared in class 10 or 12 examination in an educational institution located in the UT shall be domicile of Ladakh for the purposes of appointment to any post under the UT or under a local or other authority other than cantonment board. Children of central government officials, All India Services Officers, officials of Public Sector Undertaking and autonomous body of central government, Public Sector Banks, officials of statutory bodies, officials of central universities and recognised research institutes of central government who have served in the UT for a total period of 10 years are also eligible for domicile. Reservation for the Economically Weaker Sections continues to be 10 per cent. In another notification, the government said that in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils Act, 1997, not less than one-third of the total number of seats in the Councils shall be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different territorial constituencies. The rotation of constituencies reserved for women shall be made on the basis of serial number allotted to each constituencies by notification in the official gazette. Ladakh has two autonomous hill development councils - the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Leh and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil. Domicile certificate will be valid only for the purpose of appointment to the posts under the UT of Ladakh as defined in the Ladakh Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment (Amendment) Regulation, 2025. Besides making English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti and Purgi as the official languages of Ladakh, the government said English shall continue to be used for all the official purposes of the UT for which it was being used before the date of commencement of this regulation. The administrator of the UT will also take such necessary steps to strengthen the institutional mechanisms for the promotion and development of other languages in Ladakh and the establishment of the Academy of Art, Culture and Languages. Special efforts will be made for the promotion and development of other native languages of Ladakh like Shina (Dardic), Brokskat (Dardic), Balti and Ladakhi. According to the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, Jammu and Kashmir has been made a UT with a legislative assembly and Ladakh a UT without any assembly. The BJP-led Centre had assured a delegation from Ladakh in December 2023 that it was committed to fast-tracking the development of the UT and meeting the aspirations of the people in the region. Subsequently, the Ministry of Home Affairs formed a High Powered Committee (HPC) for Ladakh under Union Minister of State Nityanand Rai's chairmanship to discuss measures needed to protect the region's unique culture and language, taking into consideration its geographical location and strategic importance. The HPC was given mandate to discuss ways for protection of land and employment, measures for inclusive development and employment generation in the region, measures related to the empowerment of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils of Leh and Kargil and constitutional safeguards that could be provided. Several organisations of Ladakh were demanding a separate UT for the region for decades and the demand was fulfilled on August 5, 2019. However, many people of Ladakh were not happy after losing the rights to elect their representatives to the legislative assembly. In August 2024, the Centre created five new districts in the UT of new districts were Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang. Being a UT, Ladakh comes under the direct administrative control of the union home ministry. In October 2024, climate activist Sonam Wangchuk also sat on an indefinite fast in Delhi to press for their demands After that, talks were held with civil society leaders from Ladakh on December 3, 2024 and again on January 15 this year and on May 27.
