Srinagar: As the Jammu and Kashmir government prepares for the bifurcation of the state into two Union Territories (UTs), it is faced with a new problem. Most of its officials are unwilling to sign in for an assignment at Ladakh, what with its trying climate and other challenges put forth by the mountainous region.
“Everyone wants their name not to come up in the list of officials being posted in the newly created Union Territory of Ladakh,” said an official. “Even those officials who are natives of Ladakh and are currently working in Kashmir or Jammu divisions do not want to be posted at their native place.”
Ladakh is known as a cold desert and occupies 59,146 square kilometres of the total 1,040,90 square kilometres of state land, which means 57% of total state land.
The region comprises two districts – Kargil and Leh – with a population of 2.90 lakh people as per the 2011 Census. Kargil, with the Muslim majority, has 1, 43,388, while Leh, with a Buddhist majority, has a population of 1,47,107.
The region has prolonged winters and remains cut off from the outside world for almost six months when the temperature drops to minus 40°C in places like Drass – the second coldest place in the world.
Also read: Ground Report | In Leh, Celebrations Give Way to Concerns over Land and Job Protections
According to the J&K Reorganisation Act, which was voted for by parliament on August 5, the state of J&K will be bifurcated into two UTs of J&K and Ladakh on October 31.
Both the UTs will get separate lieutenant governors. While J&K will have a legislative assembly, Ladakh will function without a legislature of its own.
The UT of J&K will have 17 administrative departments. Compared to J&K, the bureaucratic set-up in Ladakh will be “very small”.
According to the official, the chief secretary will head a team of three to four administrative secretaries in Ladakh apart from a small team of officials comprising additional secretaries, special secretaries and deputy secretaries.
The region also has two hill councils, which are autonomous bodies for running local governance in Kargil and Leh.
Prior to the August 5 decision, the governor-led State Administrative Council (SAC) in July approved the creation of 495 posts of various categories for fully operationalising Ladakh, which was given a separate division status after it was separated from Kashmir.
A view of Leh town from the palace.
The new posts created include those of 12 directors, four chief engineers, four joint directors, chief conservator of forests, regional wildlife warden and other positions.
Over 470 more posts at different levels and belonging to different departments were also created to support directorates and chief engineers’ offices.
“But the challenge is to fill up these posts particularly at a higher level,” said an official pleading anonymity. “There is a notion within official circles that Ladakh is a punishment posting.”
An additional secretary posted in the secretariat said some officials have already made up their mind to resign from the services if they are assigned the “punishment posting of Ladakh”.
Also read: Over 380 Ladakhi-Origin Police Personnel to Be Transferred From J&K to Ladakh
Faced with the challenge, the state government on October 11 asked employees to submit choice for allocation to J&K or Ladakh UT. The government, however, made it clear in a circular that employees’ choices would not be final and it would be the prerogative of the administration to allot or depute them in terms of the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019.
The employees were asked to submit their options by October 22.
J&K has a total employee force of 4.5 lakh apart from over 80,000 employees working in autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies.
The number of sanctioned posts for entire Jammu and Kashmir, as per the “Establishment Budget” is 5.03 lakh, which is highest among all northern states.
The government’s circular has evoked a “cold response” as far the Ladakh option was concerned, said another official who is part of the team which has been tasked to redraw the administrative set-up in the two UTs.
“As of now there is one list of around 350 police personnel including some senior officials cleared for deputation to Ladakh,” said the official.
A local news agency reported that government has now issued a separate circular asking state employees to give reasons why should they be retained in J&K and Ladakh UTs itself and not posted outside states.
The official however said the fresh circular “seems a pressure tactic” by the government to quell any resentment against postings in Ladakh.
“The region (Ladakh) doesn’t have enough number of native officials and employees to run the administration,” said the official. “It is a race against time now to set the system in place in Ladakh by October 31,” he added.