L-G Saxena announces 5 new districts in Ladakh ahead of Amit Shah’s visit, UT to have 7 districts now

'The development is aligned with Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of a developed and prosperous Ladakh,' Saxena said in the post.

Srinagar: Ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s two-day visit to Ladakh from April 30, the Union Territory (UT) administration on Monday approved the creation of five new districts, a move framed as administrative reform but unfolding amid ongoing negotiations over political safeguards.

Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena announced the decision in a post on X, calling it a “historic step” aimed at taking governance closer to people in remote areas and improving administrative efficiency in the vast region.

“A historic day for Ladakh. I have approved the notification for creation of five new districts in Ladakh, fulfilling the aspirations and long pending demand of the people of Ladakh," he said in a post on X.

The proposed districts—Zanskar and Drass in Kargil region, and Sham, Nubra and Changthang in Leh—will increase the total number of districts in Ladakh from two to seven.

The announcement comes just days before Shah’s visit, during which he is expected to review development projects and hold interactions with local representatives. Officials said the visit will also be closely watched in the context of the Centre’s engagement with civil society groups in Ladakh.

The next round of talks between the Union government and Ladakhi representatives is scheduled for May 22 in New Delhi. The dialogue process involves two key groupings—the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA)—which have been pressing for constitutional and political safeguards.

Their core demands include statehood for Ladakh; inclusion under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution to protect land, jobs and tribal rights; a separate public service recruitment mechanism with safeguards for locals; and enhanced political representation.

The demands have gathered momentum since 2019, when Ladakh was carved out as a UT without a legislature from the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.

While the administration has presented the creation of new districts as a governance measure to improve service delivery in remote and sparsely populated areas, leaders of both LAB and KDA have consistently maintained that administrative changes cannot substitute for constitutional guarantees.

In recent statements, representatives of the two groups have called for tangible outcomes from the talks, arguing that previous rounds of engagement with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs have not led to concrete progress.

The Centre has so far maintained that discussions are ongoing and has indicated openness to certain administrative and legislative measures, though there has been no commitment on the demand for Sixth Schedule status or full statehood.

The timing of the district reorganisation, just ahead of Shah’s visit and the next round of talks, is being seen by observers as a calibrated step aimed at addressing governance concerns while broader political demands remain under negotiation.