Unemployment is brewing frustration among Ladakh’s youth, and the scale of the job crisis is clear even in official data. 

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey, 39.6 percent of graduates in Ladakh were unemployed in 2023-2024, an almost 13 percentage point rise from the previous year. The national average, by contrast, stands at 12.4 percent. Only two others come close: Andaman and Nicobar Islands (33.4 percent) and Arunachal Pradesh (31.3 percent).

The desperation behind the numbers is visible on the ground. On July 16, the Leh Autonomous Hill Development – Subordinate Services Recruitment Board advertised 534 jobs across departments. Around 50,000 applications poured in.

In a region with only 3,00,000 people, that meant that one in every six residents applied. Romil Singh Tonk, the Deputy Commissioner and CEO of the Leh Autonomous Hill Development Council, said the candidates will be selected through a recruitment exam scheduled for November. 

The competition also suggests a loss of government job opportunities following 2019. 

When Article 370 was abrogated and Ladakh became a Union Territory, the region lost the chance for its youth to join the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission. According to the PLFS 2023-24, only about 25.5 percent of workers in Ladakh hold regular wage or salaried positions, while casual labour forms 8.8 percent, lower than the national average of 19.8 percent. Merely 4.76 percent of Ladakh’s workers are in the manufacturing sector, lower than the national average of 11.44 percent.

What about the rest?

Nearly two-thirds (65.7  percent) of Ladakh’s workforce is self-employed, higher than the national average of 58.4 percent and comparable to Himachal Pradesh (66.2 percent) and Jammu and Kashmir (66.7 percent), according to the PLFS 2023-24. 

This employment pattern suggests that much of Ladakh’s economy still depends on self-run enterprises, the agricultural sector, and informal activities linked to tourism.

However, for many young Ladakhis, the dependency on sectors such as tourism offer little security, with jobs in the sector remaining largely informal, and without social security benefits or permanent contracts.

Shahid Ahmed Khan, a 19-year-old student at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, detailed this reality when talking about his hometown in Zanskar. “You are in the city side, if you go near my hometown in Zanskar, you will see that people are still struggling, trying to work in agriculture,” he said. 

His uncle, despite pursuing a PhD in tourism, faces an uncertain future in an industry that offers seasonal work at best. “I have some seniors, who topped in class 10 and 12 but have failed to secure a job and drive vans,” Khan said.

The Agniveer dilemma

The army represented a path to stability for young Ladakhis. Ladakh’s per capita annual recruitment in the army has been among the highest in the country. 

But the introduction of the Agniveer scheme, which offers only four years of service without guaranteed permanent positions, has shaken this traditional avenue of employment.

“Even I was thinking of joining the army but then after four years of Agniveer, everything will be over and I will be unemployed again,” Khan said. Instead, he’s now planning to study psychology at Delhi University, hoping to become a psychotherapist.

Kargil war hero and Vir Chakra awardee Sepoy (retd) Tsering Dorjay was sceptical about the scheme too. Dorjay’s son is now an Agniveer recruit, hoping to transition into the Border Security Forces, Central Industrial Security Force, or other security forces after his tenure ends. “Well, the government has said that after four years of the Agniveer scheme, there will be 10 percent reservation for them in paramilitary forces. Let us see. Nobody wants to go only for four years. The first year is just training.”

Chering Dorje Lakruk, co-chairman of the Leh Apex Body, highlighted another dimension of the crisis: “The problem here is for educated people being unemployed. A graduate is not going to do a housekeeping job.”

Asked about job creation after the announcement of five more districts in Ladakh last year, Lakruk claimed it was “all on paper”. “We can’t see any progress on the ground after the announcement. Generally, either a Deputy Commissioner or a Superintendent of Police or Heads of Departments are appointed if a new district has been created, followed by further post creations. That is how a district is formed along with infrastructure creation. But none of that can be seen on the ground,” he added. 

It was only in July 2025, nearly six years after the formation of the Union Territory, that the UT administration initiated a recruitment drive for 359 gazetted posts through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). This was preceded by the Union government notifying new policies for Ladakh in June, paving the way for 85 percent reservation for resident Ladakhis in government jobs. 

Political connection?

Some Ladakhis claim that the unemployment crisis is inseparable from Ladakh’s broader political demands. 

Stanzin Nubru, a representative of the Leh Apex Body’s youth wing, said, “While getting the Sixth Schedule inclusion doesn’t directly create jobs, the district councils will be able to make laws on employment, business, among other things. The government has given 85 percent reservation but that is a temporary measure. After getting statehood and the Sixth Schedule, we will be able to employ Ladakhis ourselves.” 

Newslaundry had earlier detailed the struggle of Ladakhis for self-governance.

On October 22, leaders of the Lex Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance traveled to Delhi for talks with the Ministry of Home Affairs. This was over the four-point agenda: statehood; inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule; the establishment of a Ladakh Service Commission; and two parliamentary seats, one each for Leh and Kargil. Demands they believe could also create more local control over employment and development.

Some of these demands were also earlier brought into focus by social activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had led 100 volunteers on a march from Leh to Delhi on September 1, 2024. Wangchuk’s protests had stemmed from the 2019 transformation of Ladakh into a union territory. Since then, representatives have sought inclusion in the Sixth Schedule, which would grant power to create autonomous districts and regional councils with elected bodies capable of making laws on forest management, agriculture, village administration, land, marriage, and social customs.

After the September 24 violence, Lieutenant Governor Kavinder Gupta defended the administration’s efforts to create jobs. “Based on their demands, the government recently said that 85 percent of government jobs would be reserved for domiciled Ladakhis – over and above the 10 percent quota for EWS. That virtually covers the whole population,” he told The Indian Express.

According to the L-G’s office, the UT administration has notified around 8,000 jobs in the region since 2019. This figure is in addition to 4,000 positions for daily wagers and 5,000 recruitments in the army’s Ladakh Scouts.

All eyes are now on the outcome of the talks between Ladakhi leaders and the central government. After the meeting on Wednesday, Ladakh MP Mohmad Hanifa had told the media the discussions were “positive” and expressed hope for a resolution soon.

Newslaundry sent questions to the Lieutenant Governor and Chief Secretary. Phone calls to their offices remained unanswered. This report will be updated if a response is received.

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