Ladakh expands hill council constituencies to 100

Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena has notified 100 constituencies for eight Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils (LAHDC) following the promulgation of the LAHDC (Amendment) Regulation, 2026, by President Droupadi Murmu.

The amendment expands local governance across all eight districts of the Union Territory, including newly created districts such as Sankoo. The total number of elected seats has nearly doubled from 52 to 100. The distribution of seats across the councils is as follows: Leh (22), Kargil (21), Sankoo (13), Changthang (10), Nubra (9), Sham (9), Zanskar (9), and Drass (7).

Under the new regulation, constituencies were rationalized using panchayat halqas and municipal wards to balance population and geography. The councils will hold district-level powers, including land allocation, tax levying, and fund management. Additionally, the administration may nominate four members to each council to represent women and unrepresented communities.

While the administration views this as a milestone for grassroots democracy, local groups including the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance have expressed opposition, alleging that the amendment strengthens UT administration control and curtails the powers of the hill councils.