Ladakh groups welcome Centre’s decision to create five new districts, urge caution

The Apex Body Leh (ABL) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) welcomed the Centre's decision to create five more districts in Ladakh but urged people to exercise caution in celebrations till complete details are made public.

ABL said the decision won't impact its foot march from Leh to New Delhi to press for statehood, implementation of sixth schedule of Constitution, separate public service commission and two Lok Sabha seats for Ladakh.

The march is scheduled to start from September 1 and volunteers, led by ABL members and award-winning climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, will reach Delhi on Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, it said.


"It is a good decision by the government of India but it won't impact our programme of foot march to Delhi as our demands are separate from this. People should celebrate this decision with caution as we don't know the exact details yet," said Cherring Dorje Lakruk, co-chairman of ABL. The ABL and KDA further said that they had invited BJP unit in Ladakh to join the march but they refused. Lakruk, however, said that BJP had promised to facilitate dialogue between ABL and KDA with the Centre. "We are representatives of the aspirations of the people of Ladakh," he said.

KDA representative Sajjad Kargili also welcomed the decision but appealed for an amendment to include the Suru Valley region as one more district. "It is also important to clarify whether these new districts will be fully functional with all powers."