The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: In a high-powered committee meeting held on Tuesday (December 3), the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) proposed 95 per cent reservation in government jobs for locals in Ladakh.
It has also proposed one-third reservation for women in hill councils and has agreed to address concerns regarding land-related matters, said leaders from the region reported The Hindu.
The Centre has also proposed to work on a draft to ensure “constitutional safeguards” to preserve the land and culture of Ladakh. It has also agreed to declare Urdu and Bhoti the official languages of the Union Territory, with the MHA proposing to review 22 pending laws to address local concerns, empowerment and wildlife areas.
Ladakh has been witnessing protests ever since it lost the constitutional safeguards ensured under the Article 370, that was read down by the BJP government in the Centre back in 2019.
“Ever since Ladakh became a union territory not a single gazetted recruitment has taken place. Our educated youth are jobless, almost all recruitments done so far are contractual in nature. The next meeting is on January 15 where sixth schedule will be discussed. The government has assured us that recruitments will start immediately. We said recruitments for gazetted posts should be done through the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC). We do not want it through DANICS (Delhi Andaman and Nicobar Islands Civil Service),” said Thupstan Chhewang, chairman of the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and a former BJP MP.
Chhewang, who attended the talks, said recruitment for gazetted posts such as doctors, engineers would start immediately.