Leh, July 14: In a major step towards strengthening grassroots democracy and decentralised governance, the Union Territory Administration of Ladakh has announced that all seven districts of the region will have Autonomous Hill Development Councils (AHDCs), expanding the existing system beyond Leh and Kargil.
The announcement was made by Ladakh Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra, who said the move aims to ensure balanced regional development and provide elected local governance to all districts of the Union Territory. At present, only Leh and Kargil have functioning Hill Development Councils, while the five newly created districts—Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra and Changthang—will also receive elected councils with powers under the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) Act.
Officials said that amendments to the LAHDC Act and delimitation of constituencies will be undertaken before elections are conducted in the new councils. Once the legal process is completed, all seven districts will have their own elected Hill Development Councils, significantly enhancing local participation in governance.
The proposed councils will exercise powers relating to local planning, development, education, health, infrastructure, land use, taxation and other district-level administrative matters, similar to the existing councils in Leh and Kargil. The initiative is expected to improve administrative efficiency and bring governance closer to the people in the newly created districts.
The development follows the creation of five new districts in Ladakh earlier this year, increasing the total number of districts from two to seven. The administration has described the decision as a landmark reform aimed at ensuring equitable development, strengthening democratic decentralisation and promoting inclusive governance across the Union Territory.(KNC)
