Women protests force Ladakh administration to discuss ‘declaring region a dry UT'

Facing women-led protests in Ladakh over the opening of liquor shops, the Lieutenant Governor administration on Tuesday (October 27, 2026) agreed to discuss declaring Ladakh a dry Union Territory (UT), saying the matter requires “careful deliberation and consultation with all concerned stakeholders”.“The demand for declaring Ladakh a completely dry UT is a significant matter that requires careful deliberation and consultation with all concerned stakeholders, for which all agreed,” said Ladakh Chief Secretary Ashish Kundra.The L-G administration held a meeting with the representatives of the All Ladakh Gompa Association, Ladakh Buddhist Association, the Anjuman Imamia-Leh, the All Ladakh Gompa Association and the All Ladakh Tour Operators Association. It came in the wake of local women in Leh holding a sit-in for the past six days. The women protesters raised slogans “shame, shame” and were carrying placards reading ‘Don’t trade public health for government revenue’. They were demanding that “the liberal liquor policy” should be rolled back. On May 31 this year, the L-G administration introduced a new liquor license policy and decided “to increase retail outlets from two to 20 and extend sales to remote pockets such as Nubra, Changthang, Sham, and Zanskar”, regions frequented by tourists from across the country. The new excise policy allowed consumption of liquor within hotel rooms, simplified licensing procedures by reducing required documents from 16 to 6, and removed the requirement for district administration approval for licences.Mr. Kundra said the meeting with the civil society groups “provided an opportunity for the representatives to present their views and underscored the need for continued engagement and dialogue towards a balanced and informed consideration of the issue”.“The administration was flexible in its approach to public policy and would be amenable to a middle-ground solution in the matter. If required, another meeting with a larger set of stakeholders would be convened soon,” said Mr. Kundra.Mr. Kundra, while referring to States like Bihar and Haryana, said the complete prohibition had led to serious consequences, including the proliferation of spurious liquor and drugs. “This is also a cultural issue, and the community needs careful consideration of the consequences of declaring Ladakh as a dry territory. There are also issues of employment, tourism and economic activity and consultation with the hotel industry is also crucial in this regard, particularly given that tourism is the primary economic activity in the territory,” said Mr. Kundra.He called for “a broad-based consultative process involving religious organisations, hotel associations, tour and travel operators’ associations, and other relevant stakeholders, keeping in view the social, cultural and economic dimensions of the issue”. Meanwhile, an official spokesman said the representatives of Ladakh groups were informed that “in response to public sentiment, the Excise Policy 2026–27 had been rolled back and now the Excise Policy 2025–26 was in force”. Officials disclosed that this year only one retail vendor was functional and the number of functional bars attached to restaurants offering retail sale of liquor, which was earlier 23, had increased by 17 newly issued licences, taking the total to 40. Published - October 28, 2026 01:20 am IST