NEW DELHI: Home ministry on Monday approved the creation of five new districts in the Union Territory of Ladakh, in a move aimed at better percolation of development and welfare schemes to the grassroots, thus boosting governance. PM Narendra Modi said on X, “Creation of five new districts in Ladakh is a step towards better governance and prosperity.Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang will now receive more focused attention, bringing services and opportunities even closer to the people. Congratulations to the people there.”
Making the announcement earlier, home minister Amit Shah said on X, “In pursuit of PM Narendra Modi ji’s vision to build a developed and prosperous Ladakh, the MHA has decided to create five new districts in the Union Territory. The new districts, namely Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang, will take the benefits meant for the people to their doorsteps by bolstering governance in every nook and cranny.”
The five new districts will take the number of districts in Ladakh to seven. Currently, the northern-most UT – unique in terms of its large area, difficult terrain, very low population density and strategic location next to China – comprises the two districts of Leh and Kargil.
While approving the five new districts on Monday, the home ministry directed the Ladakh administration to set up a committee to assess various aspects related to the formation of new districts, such as their headquarters, boundaries and structure; and creation of posts, etc. The panel will submit its report within three months, based on which the UT of Ladakh will send the final proposal regarding creation of the new districts to the MHA for further action.
Ladakh, earlier part of the erstwhile state of J&K, was hived off into a separate UT as part of reorganisation of J&K in 2019. Stating that Ladakh is one of the least populated areas of the country, MHA in a statement on Monday said, “Being extremely difficult and inaccessible, at present, the district administration was facing many difficulties in reaching the grassroots level. After the formation of these districts, now all public welfare schemes of the central govt and Ladakh administration will be able to reach the people easily and more and more people will be able to take advantage of them. This important decision of MHA will prove to be very useful in the all-round development of Ladakh.”
Since 2015, the Modi govt has made several efforts to boost development in Ladakh by approving nine schemes worth over Rs 21,000 crore exclusively for the region.
Making the announcement earlier, home minister Amit Shah said on X, “In pursuit of PM Narendra Modi ji’s vision to build a developed and prosperous Ladakh, the MHA has decided to create five new districts in the Union Territory. The new districts, namely Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang, will take the benefits meant for the people to their doorsteps by bolstering governance in every nook and cranny.”
The five new districts will take the number of districts in Ladakh to seven. Currently, the northern-most UT – unique in terms of its large area, difficult terrain, very low population density and strategic location next to China – comprises the two districts of Leh and Kargil.
While approving the five new districts on Monday, the home ministry directed the Ladakh administration to set up a committee to assess various aspects related to the formation of new districts, such as their headquarters, boundaries and structure; and creation of posts, etc. The panel will submit its report within three months, based on which the UT of Ladakh will send the final proposal regarding creation of the new districts to the MHA for further action.
Ladakh, earlier part of the erstwhile state of J&K, was hived off into a separate UT as part of reorganisation of J&K in 2019. Stating that Ladakh is one of the least populated areas of the country, MHA in a statement on Monday said, “Being extremely difficult and inaccessible, at present, the district administration was facing many difficulties in reaching the grassroots level. After the formation of these districts, now all public welfare schemes of the central govt and Ladakh administration will be able to reach the people easily and more and more people will be able to take advantage of them. This important decision of MHA will prove to be very useful in the all-round development of Ladakh.”
Since 2015, the Modi govt has made several efforts to boost development in Ladakh by approving nine schemes worth over Rs 21,000 crore exclusively for the region.