List of districts of Ladakh

As of 2026, the Indian-administered union territory of Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region consists of 7 notified districts.Historic milestone for Ladakh: Five new districts notified in Ladakh; taking total districts to seven, 27 Apr 2026. They include Kargil (with 80 revenue villages), Drass (19), Sham (27), Changthang (24), Nubra (30), Leh (44) and Zanskar (26), with a total of 151 revenue villages.Shrinking of Muslim-Majority Districts, Questions Over Wildlife: What the Redrawing of Ladakh's Administrative Boundaries Means, The Wire, 1 May 2026. Out of the seven districts, first two are Muslim majority while the rest have a Buddhist majority.

Ladakh has no union territory level legislature, but sends a single member of parliament. There are two autonomous district councils, LADHC Kargil and LAHDC Leh. Recently, Autonomous Hill Development Councils were announced for all seven districts in Ladakh.

History

1846-1947: Princely state of Jammu and Kashmir

Prior to 1947, Ladakh was part of Kashmir when Jammu and Kashmir was a princely state under the paramountcy of the British Indian Empire. The central part of the princely state was administratively divided into the provinces Jammu and Kashmir. In addition there were frontier districts and semi-autonomous jagirs (principalities). They were subdivided as follows:, page 31.

Jammu and Kashmir core Jammu province: Districts of Jammu, Udhampur and Mirpur (later became part of Azad Kashmir)

Kashmir province: Districts of Anantnag, Baramulla and Muzaffarabad (Muzzafarabad later became part of Azad Kashmir).

Internal jagirs within Jammu and Kashmir: Poonch (half of it later became part of Azad Kashmir), Chenani and Bhaderwah.

Frontier districts: Ladakh district with three sub-districts: Leh, Kargil and Skardu (Skardu later became part of Gilgit-Baltistan).

Gilgit district with two sub-districts: Gilgit and Astore. (Both later became part of Gilgit-Baltistan)

Frontier ilaqas (areas): Punial, Ishkoman, Yasin, Kuh Ghizar, Hunza, Nagar and Chilas (all of these regions later became part of Gilgit-Baltistan).

The Gilgit district and the frontier ilaqas were administered by the British administration as the Gilgit Agency, which were returned to the princely state prior to the Partition of India.

1948-2026

After the accession of Jammu and Kashmir to the Indian Union, it consisted of three divisions: the Jammu Division, the Kashmir Division and Ladakh. In 2019, as per the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, Ladakh became a separate Union Territory. At that time, Ladakh had two districts, the Shia Muslim-majority Kargil district with 99 revenue villages and the Buddhist-majority Leh district with 151 revenue villages.Five new districts created in Union Territory of Ladakh, fulfilling peoples long-pending demand, newsonair.gov.in, 2026.

2026: 5 new districts in Ladakh Union Territory

On 27 April 2026, 5 new districts were notified in the government gazette for boosting the service delivery and infrastructure, taking the number of districts in Ladakh to 7. Three new districts Nubra, Sham, and Changthang were carved out of the Leh district; while Zanskar and Drass were carved out of the Kargil district. This reorganisation saw Leh district with 44 revenue villages, Nubra with 30, Changthang with 24, Kargil with 80, Sham with 27, Drass with 19, and Zanskar with 26 revenue villages. These districts, earlier announced on 26 August 2024, were awaiting the formal notification for the creation. 6 new tehsils, 9 niabats (sub-tehsils), and 18 Patwar circles were also created. Ladakh to have 33 administrative units in 5 new districts; MHA, FM nod awaited, dailyexcelsior.com, 11 Dec 2025. More than 97% of the population in these new districts are various Scheduled Tribes, including the Balti Shia, Boto, Brokpa, and Changpa communities.Ladakh gets 5 new districts ahead of Amit Shah’s Leh visit; total count rises to 7, The Statesman, 27 April 2026. Since announcement in 2024, the Ladakh administration has been constructing the physical infrastructure (buildings, etc) on the land identified in Khaltsi (Sham), Diskit (Nubra), Nyoma (Changthang), Padum (Zanskar), and Drass for the District Collectorate complexes. 359 gazetted jobs via UPSC and nearly 4,000 non-gazetted jobs via the Ladakh Subordinate Services Staff Selection Board were recruited in 2026 for these new offices.

List of districts

Sl no.DistrictHeadquartersEstablishedSubdivisionsTehsils AreaPopulation (2011)Autonomous District CouncilMap1ChangthangNyoma2026 Nyoma Durbuk Nyoma Anlay Tangtse Chumathang 13,000LAHDC ChangthangAutonomous Hill Development Council announced for all seven districts in Ladakh. What does this mean?, WION, 13 Jul 2026.2DrassDrass-Ranbirpura2026 Dras Drass21,998LAHDC Drass3KargilKargil1979 Sankoo Shakar Chiktan Kargil Sankoo Shakar Chiktan Shargole Taisuru Gound Mangal Pore TSG 140,802LAHDC Kargil4LehLeh1979 Kharu Leh Chushot Kharu Basgo Gia 133,487LAHDC Leh5NubraDiskit2026 Nubra Diskit Sumoor Panamic Turtuk Khalsar Charasa22,433LAHDC Nubra6ShamKhalatse2026 Likir Khalatse Khalsi Temisgam Wanla Skurbuchan Saspol 33,000LAHDC Sham7ZanskarPadum2026 Zanskar Padum Zangla Lungnak Chah13,793LAHDC Zanskar—Total1032274,2897

List of districts of Ladakh

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