President Promulgates Reservation and Domicile Regulations for Ladakh

SRINAGAR, JUNE 3: In a landmark administrative decision aimed at safeguarding employment rights of locals in the Union Territory of Ladakh, the President of India has promulgated the Ladakh Reservation (Amendment) Regulation, 2025, effectively reserving 85 per cent of government jobs in the region for eligible domiciles.

The regulation, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), amends the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, in its application to Ladakh. The total percentage of reservations, however, excludes the quota for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), and applies to all posts in government departments, services, and public institutions within the UT.

As per the agreement between the Union Government, the Leh Apex Body, and the Kargil Democratic Alliance, the reservation structure will allocate 80 per cent of posts for Scheduled Tribes, four per cent for persons residing along the Actual Line of Control (ALC)/Line of Control (LoC), and one per cent for Scheduled Castes.

The new regulation also stipulates that Section 5 of the J&K Reservation Act, concerning the procedure for filling vacancies in reserved categories, shall not apply to EWS. Instead, the process for filling such vacancies will be notified separately.

Section 5, in its original form, mandates that unfilled reserved vacancies be carried forward for up to three years, after which they may be de-reserved. This exclusion suggests the government may frame a distinct mechanism to ensure adequate representation of EWS without adhering to the carry-forward limitation.

Domicile-Based Recruitment

Alongside the reservation policy, the President has also promulgated the Ladakh Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment Regulations, 2025, to institutionalise a domicile-based framework for public employment.

The regulation defines domicile as any individual who has either resided in Ladakh for a continuous period of 15 years or has studied there for at least seven years and appeared in either Class 10 or Class 12 examinations.

Children of central government officials, personnel of public sector undertakings, autonomous bodies, public sector banks, and recognised research institutions who have served in Ladakh for ten years since its formation as a Union Territory on October 31, 2019, are also deemed domiciles. Additionally, the spouse of a domicile shall be eligible under the same status.

Grant of Domicile Certificate

The MHA has concurrently notified the Ladakh Civil Services Decentralisation and Recruitment – Grant of Domicile Certificate (Procedure) Rules, 2025, detailing the process and categories eligible for domicile certification.

Eligibility includes:

• Individuals possessing a valid Ladakh Resident Certificate (LRC) or eligible for it, and their children;
• Children of Ladakh residents living outside the UT due to employment or business;
• Individuals who have resided in Ladakh for 15 years since October 31, 2019, and their children;
• Individuals who have studied in Ladakh for seven years and appeared in their Class 10 or 12 examinations after October 31, 2019;
• Children of central government officials posted in Ladakh for at least ten years since its transition to a UT.

These provisions are aimed at ensuring equitable representation for Ladakh’s indigenous communities while balancing the interests of non-local stakeholders with longstanding ties to the region.

This development marks a significant milestone in Ladakh’s administrative evolution post the abrogation of Article 370 and its bifurcation from Jammu and Kashmir in 2019. The regulations are seen as an attempt to address longstanding demands for constitutional safeguards under the Sixth Schedule, albeit through executive and legislative instruments tailored to the UT’s specific context.

(Inputs from agencies)

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