Ladakh to set up autonomous hill development councils for all 7 districts: Chief Secretary

Leh, Jul 13 (PTI) The Union Territory Administration will constitute an Autonomous Hill Development Council (AHDC) in each of Ladakh's seven districts, Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra announced on Monday. The official described the move as a major step towards strengthening grassroots governance and balanced development across the region. Ladakh moved from two districts to seven in April 2026, when Sham, Nubra, Changthang, Zanskar, and Drass were notified as new districts. Elected representation until now has remained with the two existing councils, one each in Leh and Kargil. "Ladakh Administration has decided to constitute Autonomous Hill Development Council in each of the seven districts. It is a major step towards democratic decentralisation and grassroots governance," Kundra told reporters here. He said Section 3(1) of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) Act already provides for a council for every district, to be constituted from a date the government notifies in the gazette. Only amendments to the Act, where required, and a delimitation of constituencies remain. PTI TAS SKL VN VN