Article Title: Ladakh gets new policies on quota, domicile status
03-06-2025
Polity & Governance Current Affairs Analysis
Context
• Amid demands by Ladakhi civil society groups seeking “constitutional safeguards” for the region, the Centre on Tuesday notified new policies on reservation, languages, domiciles, and the composition of hill councils for Ladakh, which became a Union Territory in 2019.
• The notifications pave the way for 85% reservation for resident Ladakhis in government jobs. For other residents — including children of Central government officials—to be considered “domiciles”, they will have to show 15 years of continuous residence from October 31, 2019, Ladakh’s foundation day.
• In a first, a third of the seats in hill councils have been reserved for women on a rotational basis. The official languages of the U.T. will be English, Hindi, Urdu, Bhoti, and Purgi.
• President Droupadi Murmu notified the Union Territory of Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Regulation, 2025, which amends the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004 in Ladakh’s context
5th vs 6th Schedule
• The 5th Schedule of the Indian Constitution applies to the administration of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in states other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram. This includes 10 states: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Rajasthan.
• The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, under Article 244(2) and Article 275(1) of the Constitution, is provided for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.
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