A long-cherished dream of the people of Ladakh has finally become a reality after the Jammu and Kashmir government decided to set up the first-ever university in the cold desert of Ladakh.
State Administrative Council (SAC), which met in Jammu on Saturday under the chairmanship of Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik, approved the establishment of the first-ever university in Ladakh.
"It will be a cluster university covering five colleges of Leh and Kargil districts. The university will be established with an initial grant of Rs 65 crore to be provided next fiscal. Establishment of the varsity will fulfil a long-standing demand of the people of the districts," said an official spokesman. Spread over 86,909 square kilometres, the cold desert of Ladakh comprises two districts of Kargil and Leh with a population of 2.74 lakh. In Kargil female literacy rate is 56.30 per cent, compared to male literacy rate of 83.15. The average rate of literacy is 71.34 per cent. Leh with a 1.33 lakh population has an average literacy of 77.20. Female literacy rate is 63.56 per cent compared to male literacy of 86.31 per cent in the Leh district.
Ladakh has been up in arms for several years demanding a separate university for the division. Though the University of Kashmir had set up a campus in the division, it was not serving the purpose of the people of the cold desert.
"Granting the setting up of an university is the biggest gift to Ladakh. It was a very old demand of the people of Ladakh. We had a campus of Kashmir University, but it was mostly defunct. We have been demanding a separate university which has been granted now," Gyal P Wangyal, vice chairman of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh said.
