One of the leading Indian engineers, education reformists and innovator, Sonam Wangchuk yesterday took to Twitter to express his gratitude for Tribal Minister Arjun Munda and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for considering to declare the Union Territory of Ladakh as a protected area under Schedule VI of the constitution.
https://twitter.com/Wangchuk66/status/1220753235419353089?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Earlier, Wangchuk had uploaded a video on social media website Facebook, raising concerns for the need to preserve the culture and identity of people residing in the Union Territory of Ladakh following the central government’s decision of abrogating Article 370 and the subsequent bifurcation of the state into two union territories- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Allaying Wangchuk’s concerns, the Tribal Minister Arjun Munda had sent a letter dated December 24, 2019, informing him that he has sent a proposal to the Ministry of Home Affairs to consider the declaration of the Union Territory of Ladakh as Schedule VI area.
Read- Ladakh residents organise thanksgiving ceremony to celebrate their region becoming a Union Territory
The Constitution of India provides special provisions for the administration of the tribal-dominated areas. As of now, some areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram are designated as “Tribal Areas” as per article 244 and 6th Schedule which is technically different from 5th Schedule. Both Schedule 5 and Schedule 6 deals with the dominance of tribal people. While executive powers of the union extend in Scheduled areas with respect to their administration in 5th schedule; the 6th schedule areas remain within executive authority of the state.