Ladakh reserves all Subordinate Services for ‘Residents of UT’

Administration notifies Service Rules

Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, June 8: The Union Territory of Ladakh has reserved all types of Subordinate Services for the “Residents of UT” even as rules to define the criteria of such locals are yet to be framed.
“No person shall be qualified for appointment to the Service unless the person is a Resident of Union Territory of Ladakh,” read the Union Territory of Ladakh Employment (Subordinate) Service Recruitment Rules, 2021, notified yesterday by the UT Administration.
However, this rule shall not apply to persons allotted service in UT of Ladakh under the provisions of section 89(2) of Jammu and Kashmir Re-organization Act 2019, or such Rules as may be prescribed by the Administration.
It may be recalled that the Union Territory of Ladakh was created after bifurcation of erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir into two UTs on August 5, 2019.
The Union Territory of Ladakh Employment (Subordinate) Service Recruitment Rules, 2021 have been framed by Lt Governor of the UT in exercise of the powers conferred by Statutory Order 282(E) dated 21-01-2020 and notified yesterday by the Labour & Employment Department of Ladakh UT.
These Rules shall come into force from the date of their publication in the Official Gazette and from the date of commencement of these Rules, Union Territory of Ladakh Employment (Subordinate) Service shall be constituted.
As per the Rules, appointment to the Service shall be made by direct recruitment or by promotion, failing which by absorption. The competent authority to appoint a person to the Service by absorption shall be the Administration.
Every person on appointment to the Service by direct recruitment shall be on probation for a period of two years whereas the person on appointment to the Service by promotion or by absorption shall be on probation for a period of six months. The age limit and other qualifications for direct recruitment shall be as prescribed by the Administration.
In case of District Cadre Posts, the Chief Executive Officer of the concerned LAHDC shall maintain up to date and final seniority list of Members of the Service while the Administrative Department shall do the same in respect of other posts.
On the date of commencement of these Rules, persons who have already been appointed substantively to a post in the cadre of J&K Employment (Subordinate) Service and finally allotted for service in the UT of Ladakh in accordance with the provision of section 89(2) of the J&K Reorganization Act 2019, shall be deemed to have been appointed to the Service at the initial constitution.
The most significant in the Service Rules is the disqualification of non residents of Ladakh for appointment to the Service in the Union Territory even as no law has yet been framed to define “Resident of Union Territory of Ladakh”.
“Resident of Union Territory of Ladakh means any person who satisfies the criteria for residence as may be prescribed for the purpose of employment under the Administration of UT of Ladakh under any Act, Rule or Regulation having force of law in UT of Ladakh”, read the notification of Statutory Order 16 on the Service Rules.
Pertinent to mention here that Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory has introduced the Domicile Certificate as eligibility criteria for appointment to the Service in J&K, replacing Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC), which has been rendered null and void.