Ladakh Admn issues rules for defining Permanent Residents

Upper age limit for jobs enhanced

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Sept 4: More than two years after Ladakh was separated from Jammu and Kashmir and made a Union Territory, the administration today issued an order to temporarily define ‘Resident of UT of Ladakh’ for the purpose of appointments to all non-Gazetted posts and enhanced the upper age limit for entry into Government services against all posts meant for direct recruitment other than the Gazetted officers.
Issuance of Rules for defining permanent residents of Ladakh for recruitment and other purposes was one of the demands raised jointly by the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) in their meeting with Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai during his visit to Leh few days back. Prior to this meeting also, the LAB and KDA had repeatedly been agitating for the issue saying there has been no recruitment in the Government departments for last two years since Ladakh was bifurcated from Jammu and Kashmir and made a Union Territory in the absence of Residentship certificate leading to frustration among the youth.
Official sources told the Excelsior that the Administration of Union Territory of Ladakh today issued an order to temporarily define ‘Resident of Union territory of Ladakh’ for the purpose of appointment to all the non-Gazetted posts borne on the establishment of any Department or service of administration of the UT.
According to the Ladakh Resident Certificate Order 2021, any person who possesses a Permanent Resident Certificate issued by the competent authority in the districts of Leh and Kargil or belongs to a category of persons who would have been eligible to be issued Permanent Resident Certificate by the competent authority in the districts of Leh and Kargil shall be eligible to receive the Resident Certificate.
The order further said that children of persons possessing a Permanent Resident Certificate or children of persons who belong to a category of persons who would have been eligible to be issued Permanent Resident Certificate by the competent authority in the districts of Leh and Kargil shall also be eligible to receive the Resident Certificate.
The provisions of this order authorized the Tehsildar or any other officer notified by the administration as the competent authority to issue the Resident Certificate.
Meanwhile, the Administration of Union Territory of Ladakh has also enhanced the upper age limit for entry into Government services against all posts meant for direct recruitment other than those pertaining to Gazetted officers.
The upper age limit has been enhanced for the reserved category candidates from 43 years to 45 years, for the general category candidates from 40 to 42 years and for the physically challenged candidates from 42 to 44 years.
The order further stated that this age relaxation would be a one-time exception and this relaxation shall remain in force for a period of two years.
Sources pointed out that defining the Resident of the Union Territory of Ladakh will help the administration to advertise posts in the Non-Gazetted cadre in the UT and redress grievances of the youth who were agitated over such a prolonged delay in recrutimient of posts in the absence of Resident certificate.