Ladakhis Don’t Want To Be Swamped By Outsiders sentinelassam.com

Over a month after Ladakh got the Union Territory status, anxiety has replaced initial excitement. The fear of “outsiders” threatening the existence of locals has gripped the streets of Leh. Craving for a separate identity from Jammu and Kashmir has always been there in Ladakh. But many are now apprehensive about the loss of special status, they enjoyed under the previous arrangement, which insulated them from external influences. Over a period of time, the rugged and picturesque cold desert has grown into an attractive alternative to insurgency-hit pristine Kashmir Valley for tourists. Ladakh becomes a thriving tourist hotspot, especially in summer, boosting the local economy. Tourists are welcome, but the natives want to run their own affairs.

“We are simple people. With whatever little knowledge we have of tourism, we try to earn in six months to survive for the whole year. But once big industrialists are allowed to buy land, we will be out of competition as we don’t have the wealth and skill to match them,” said Skalzanj Dadu, a taxi driver. A shopkeeper in the main Leh market echoed the views and claimed Ladakh might soon turn into a Himachal Pradesh or Uttarakhand — the two other hill States in the north that are battling rapid commercialization.