Ladakh’s winter of discontent From cheering its UT status, the region is now mired in protest

Source: The post is based on the article “Ladakh’s winter of discontent
From cheering its UT status, the region is now mired in protest” published in Business Standard on 21st February 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure.

Relevance: About present issues in Ladakh.

News: Centre’s policies in Ladakh highlight the political risks of neglecting local aspirations.

What are the issues in Ladakh?

In 2019, Ladakhis celebrated the region’s demarcation from Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and its creation as a Union Territory. But over the past three years, locals claimed that their rights are weakening under central rule. These include a) Removal of local protections for land and jobs, b) Earlier Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council directed the affairs of the region. But now, the Council has become less relevant and is governed directly by the centre, c) Region’s ethnic tribal demography would be overwhelmed by people from the plains settling in Ladakh in larger numbers, d) Increase in private investment from outside the region, and e) Industrial projects are apparently being approved without local consent and industry groups have explored the possibility of developing and extracting minerals found in the region. Such as gold, sulphur, borax, granite, limestone, and marble.

The Union home ministry had set up a committee to examine the above grievances. But reports suggest that little progress has been made.

What are the demands of the Ladakh people?

There are demands that Ladakh should be granted statehood, just as has been promised to J&K at some later date and brought under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution as a safeguard of local rights. The Sixth Schedule, which comes under Article 244, provides for the formation of Autonomous District Councils in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.

In 2019, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes recommended that with tribes accounting for 97% of Ladakh’s population, its distinct cultural heritage needed protection under the Sixth Schedule.

Centre’s response to the demand: The Sixth Schedule is only for the North-east; for tribal areas in the rest of the country there is the Fifth Schedule, which applies to states with more than 50% tribal population.

What should be done?

The Centre could introduce a Bill to amend the Constitution to bring Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule. This will ensure trust among the locals and empower them as well.