Ladakh: In a significant development, the Union Finance Ministry has restored financial powers to the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh Kavinder Gupta. The Ministry has delegated authority for appraisal and approval of projects up to Rs.100 crore to the Administrators and LGs of Ladakh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu and Lakshadweep.
According to a communique, the powers to LGs and administrators have been granted under the Delegation of Financial Powers Rules (DFPRs), 2024. As per conditions set by the ministry, these powers have to be exercised by LGs/administrators in consultation with the respective UT’s Secretary (Finance) or Financial Advisor, as well as after adequate budgetary provisions are available.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) centralised high-value financial approvals in Ladakh for projects up to Rs. 100 crore, which significantly reduced the discretionary powers of the LG. The move had drawn criticism from the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Congress, former BJP MP JT Namgyal wrote in a Facebook post. On January 2, 2026, following a series of representations by BJP Ladakh leaders, including former CEC Tashi Gyalson and state president Khanchu Tashi with the party leadership, the MHA approved the delegation of financial powers to the LG of Ladakh, authorising the appraisal and sanctions of projects up to Rs 100 crore, he added.
The Finance Ministry directive states that delegated powers cannot be further re-delegated. It also directs that details of all proposals sanctioned under these powers must be submitted quarterly to the Department of Expenditure through the Ministry of Home Affairs-by the end of July, October, January, and April, in four quarterly reports.
As per the letter, the powers of Administrators and LGs to sanction expenditure-from in-principle approval to final approval, including appraisal, will continue under Rule 16 of DFPRs, 2024, but only after schemes are appraised and approved by the competent authorities. This decision is particularly significant for Ladakh, where political and non-political groups had taken strong exception to the Union Government’s move to withdraw the LG’s powers to approve projects up to Rs 100 crore, centralizing authority with the MHA.
When the Centre had withdrawn these powers, Leh District Congress Committee spokesperson Tundup Thinles had termed it as a conspiracy to disempower Ladakh. He had also termed it as a step taken by the Centre to erode whatever little self-governance Ladakh had. He had said that instead of decentralisation of powers needed at a remote location like Ladakh where working seasons are very limited, there is systematic disempowerment of the region. However, with the restoration of powers to the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh all the accusations have been thwarted and administrative decentralisation hails in the Union Territory of Ladakh.
