Autonomous hill councils to be extended to all seven districts in Ladakh

📌 Summary:

• The Ladakh administration announced 17 new tehsils to strengthen grassroots governance in the Union Territory
• The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) Act will be extended to all seven districts of the region through appropriate legal provisions
• The step follows the creation of new districts; the administration is building an institutional framework suited to Ladakh's unique requirements
• Announced by Ladakh Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS2 — decentralisation and grassroots governance; special provisions and institutional frameworks for Union Territories

📝 Prelims Facts:

• LAHDCs were first set up in Leh (1995) and Kargil (2003)
• Ladakh became a Union Territory without legislature in 2019 after the reorganisation of Jammu & Kashmir

🔑 Key Term: Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) — an elected body for local self-governance and area development in Ladakh