townhall times The Leh administration has issued a notice canceling the land allocated to Dr. Sonam Wangchuk’s HIAL (Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh) project, a move that locals are calling unjust. People in Ladakh are increasingly active in safeguarding their education, culture, and resources.
Dr. Sonam Wangchuk, one of India’s leading environmentalists and education reformers from Ladakh, is once again in the headlines. He was the inspiration for the character of Dr. Phunsukh Wangdu, played by Aamir Khan in Rajkumar Hirani’s 2009 film 3 Idiots. The HIAL project he founded has now received a land cancellation notice from the administration.
In 2018, the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) had allotted about 135 acres of land in Phyang village, Leh, to Dr. Wangchuk’s project for a 40-year lease, with the vision of building a university. However, on August 21, 2025, Deputy Commissioner Romil Singh Donk issued an order canceling this allocation.
The Ladakh administration argues that even after five years, no university has been built, no lease agreement has been signed, and no land transfer was executed through the tehsildar. As per rules, if formalities are not completed within one year, the allotment is automatically deemed canceled.
HIAL’s side dismisses these claims as baseless. The institute’s CEO and co-founder Geetanjali Angmo stated that more than 400 students have already graduated in convocations over the past five years, proving that the institute is very much active. She explained that on May 20, 2018—just 15 days after the land was allotted—they wrote to the administration requesting conversion of the allotment order into a lease deed. No reply came. They wrote again in March 2020, only to be told that since Ladakh had become a Union Territory, new policies had not yet been formulated. In February 2021, permission for construction was granted, but still no clarity on the lease deed. Another letter was sent in July 2023, but again, no response came.
Dr. Wangchuk himself has strongly criticized the notice, saying that despite multiple requests and documents, the administration never signed the lease deed. Now, the very lack of formalities caused by the administration’s own inaction is being used as the basis to snatch away the land and dismantle the institute. Geetanjali Angmo further revealed that on March 15, 2023, she and Dr. Wangchuk met Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. At that time, the minister praised their work and even tweeted about it. But when they met again on November 5, 2024, the minister clearly told them that as long as Wangchuk continued to demand Sixth Schedule protections for Ladakh, the university’s file would remain stuck. The file has been pending for three years.
Locals believe the government’s action is not merely administrative but also political. Wangchuk has long been demanding constitutional safeguards for the people of Ladakh. After the abrogation of Article 370 and Ladakh’s conversion into a Union Territory, he has argued that the region’s culture, land, and environment can only be protected under the Sixth Schedule. Many now see this notice as an attempt to silence voices that are fighting for Ladakh’s identity and rights.
This is not the first such controversy in Ladakh. In 2023, the administration introduced a new industrial policy reserving 70% of land for small entrepreneurs and 30% for large investors. This raised fears among locals that outsiders might seize their land and resources. In this backdrop, projects like HIAL were seen as alternative models that promoted education and development rooted in local culture and needs. Now, with the very land for such a university being taken back, anger has grown further. People say that those genuinely trying to do something positive for Ladakh are being obstructed.
This issue is not just about a piece of land—it is tied to Ladakh’s long-standing struggle. The region has three main demands:
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Inclusion under the Sixth Schedule: To give Ladakh the power to make its own laws and protect its land and identity.
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Full statehood: Currently, Ladakh has no legislative assembly. People want their own elected government.
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Job and resource security: Recently, 95% of government jobs were reserved for locals, but other demands remain unmet.
Both the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) have been pushing these demands. In 2023, the Home Ministry formed a committee under Nityanand Rai, but talks broke down in 2024. Negotiations resumed after Wangchuk’s hunger strike in October 2024, but no concrete outcomes have emerged yet.
It is important to note that Dr. Sonam Wangchuk is not only an activist but also a symbol of innovation and education reform. He invented the ice stupa to tackle water scarcity in Ladakh, established SECMOL, and pioneered alternative education models. Responding to the government’s notice, he took to social media with a touch of sarcasm. Referring to demands that he be awarded a Padma Shri or Bharat Ratna, he posted a picture of the notice on his institute’s gate and wrote:
“Look, I’ve been given my Bharat Ratna.”
In conclusion, the land cancellation notice has reignited Ladakh’s long-standing demands and struggles. The administration’s move is fueling distrust and resentment among locals. The key question now is whether Ladakh’s voice will reach Delhi, and whether people like Sonam Wangchuk will be able to bring their projects to life again. The real challenge lies in how Ladakh’s society protects its land, culture, and identity in the face of such obstacles.
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