AASUL demands immediate transfer of KVKs to University of Ladakh

In a strong and unified appeal, the Agriculture & Allied Students Union of Ladakh (AASUL), along with all major student associations of the Union Territory, has urged the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare to intervene in the long-pending transfer of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) located in Ladakh from SKUAST-Kashmir to the University of Ladakh.

The joint memorandum, dated November 19, 2025, highlights what the student bodies describe as a six-year delay in implementing provisions of the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. According to the Act, institutions functioning within Ladakh should be transferred to the UT administration on an “as-is-where-is” basis. While most departments and institutions have already shifted, the KVKs in Ladakh remain under the administrative control of Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K).

The student unions argue that the continued control by SKUAST-K contradicts the Reorganisation Act and is causing prolonged hardship for agriculture graduates in Ladakh. They point out that despite repeated representations from the UT Administration, the University of Ladakh, public representatives and student groups, the transfer process has been repeatedly delayed.

According to the memorandum, SKUAST-Kashmir currently has jurisdiction over ten KVKs, including the four situated in Ladakh. The students allege that delaying the handover allows SKUAST-K to fill its own vacancies at the cost of Ladakh’s rightful institutions, thereby disadvantaging local graduates and affecting the region’s agricultural ecosystem.

The union stressed that the University of Ladakh is now fully capable of taking over the KVKs, with Colleges of Agriculture and Horticulture already established under its umbrella and full compliance with ICAR guidelines. They also noted that KVK land transfer documents have been completed, removing any administrative hurdles.

The issue was recently discussed during a collective meeting of all student unions in Ladakh. The unions expressed concern that agriculture and allied graduates have faced injustice for years and warned that frustration among youth is at its peak. They urged authorities to act swiftly to prevent any extreme reactions from affected students.

Following the meeting, the unions submitted a joint representation to the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh and copied it to key officials, including the Union Home Ministry, Chief Secretaries of J&K and Ladakh, the Director General and Deputy Director General of ICAR, and the Vice Chancellors of SKUAST-Kashmir and the University of Ladakh.

The memorandum states that transferring the KVKs will significantly benefit Ladakh’s farmers, support unemployed agricultural graduates, strengthen local research capacity and improve extension services across the UT.

The students concluded by urging the Union Minister to take urgent action, expressing confidence that timely intervention would finally resolve an issue that has remained pending since the bifurcation of the former state in 2019.