Sankoo Notified as the Eighth District of Union Territory Ladakh

16 October 2026National

The Ladakh administration has notified Sankoo as the Union Territory's eighth district, carved out of Kargil district. Notification S.O. 284, issued by the Revenue Department on 16 October 2026, places the tehsils of Sankoo, GM Pore, TSG and Taisuru in the new district. Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena announced the decision after clearance from Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Sankoo lies in the Suru Valley, about 42 km south of Kargil town at roughly 3,150 m, known for its apricot orchards. It follows the five districts - Changthang, Drass, Nubra, Sham and Zanskar - created in April 2026.

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Ladakh became a Union Territory without a legislature on 31 October 2019 under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, with only Leh and Kargil as districts | Five new districts - Changthang, Drass, Nubra, Sham and Zanskar - were created in April 2026, before Sankoo became the eighth | Ladakh is administered by a Lieutenant Governor appointed by the President under Article 239 of the Constitution

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