New Delhi: Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk has criticised the Ladakh administration’s notice directing the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL), which he founded, to halt activities at its Desert Flower School in Phyang, calling it a “vendetta”. He alleged that the notice was sent to the media before being served to the school to create “chaos”, “tarnish” its reputation and “scare parents” into withdrawing their children.
The notice, dated 1 November and issued by the Tehsildar’s office in Leh, was addressed to Wangchuk’s wife Gitanjali J. Angmo who is HIAL’s co-founder and CEO. It directed the institute not to undertake any further activities towards the functioning of, or commencement of classes at, Desert Flower School until the matter is decided by the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, where the land allotment dispute is currently pending, or until further directions are issued by the court.
Desert Flower School is a kindergarten for young children aged 3–5 years in Phyang, Leh, Ladakh. The school has 50 students enrolled and it started operations on 2 November.
The Ladakh administration alleged that Desert Flower School had started classes and other activities without obtaining the necessary permissions and clearances. The notice also referred to a 22 September communication from Angmo seeking a no objection certificate (NOC) for the proposed members of the school’s managing committee, indicating that the approval process was still pending.
Addressing the media in an online press conference, Wangchuk on Wednesday questioned the administration’s action, pointing to the recognition HIAL had received nationally and internationally. “India’s Parliamentary Committee on Education recommended that HIAL be replicated all over the country. London’s Victoria and Albert Museum has a permanent display on it. Time magazine featured its projects in TIME100 Climate Solutions. And yet, they want it closed!” he said.
Challenging Ladakh Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Vinai Kumar Saxena and senior officials, he said, “I would like to challenge the L-G and all the commissioners to visit HIAL and Desert Flower School, see the work being done here and support these initiatives.”
He accused the administration of imposing restrictions on educational institutions while failing to address the “poor condition” of government schools in Ladakh.
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‘Bureaucratic hurdles over school approval’
Angmo also said the school had been facing delays in securing approval despite repeated correspondence with the education department.
Explaining the process, she said that under Statutory Regulatory Order (SRO) 2010, the school had to submit Form A, signed by its managing committee, to the concerned School Education Department official. However, when they approached the department, they were asked to obtain an NOC from the Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) office certifying that the managing committee did not have any political members.
She questioned the requirement, saying the SRO stipulated that managing committee members should not include family members but did not require them to be non-political.
Angmo said she approached the Deputy Commissioner’s office with references provided by the education official, but the two offices gave contradictory instructions. While the DC’s office maintained that an NOC was not required, the education official insisted that it was.
“We have written six letters to the department so far,” she said, adding that she had sent another reminder on 30 October to the Director of School Education and Deputy Director of School Education, asking them to initiate the approval process.
She also questioned the timing of the notice, saying it was issued on 1 November, a Sunday, and received by the school on 2 November. According to her, the department had not provided a timeline for completing the approval process despite the school pursuing it for nearly three months.
HIAL’s land allotment cancellation at centre of dispute
The latest notice comes amid a prolonged dispute between HIAL and the Ladakh administration over the allotment of 1,076 kanals and one marla (approximately 134.5 acres) of land at Phyang Thang.
The land was allotted to HIAL in May 2018 on a conditional 40-year lease to establish an alternative university focused on sustainable mountain development. However, on 21 August 2025, the administration cancelled the allotment, saying the institute had failed to execute the lease deed, pay the mandatory land premium and establish a university recognised under law within the stipulated period.
The administration maintained in its affidavit before the High Court that the allotment had lapsed in May 2019 because the conditions were not fulfilled within a year. It also questioned whether the land had been used for the purpose for which it was allotted.
HIAL challenged the cancellation before the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Angmo has argued that the institute applied for execution of the lease deed within weeks of the allotment in 2018, but the administration’s failure to finalise its lease policy prevented the agreement from being executed. She has also cited official communications from 2020 and 2021 in which, according to her, the administration acknowledged the delay and allowed construction to continue.
The 1 November notice links the school’s activities to this pending land dispute and asks HIAL to maintain status quo until the court decides the matter.
(Edited by Chingkheinganbi Mayengbam)
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