Srinagar, Jan. 17 -- The High Powered Committee (HPC) on Union territory of Ladakh will hold its first meeting, after the September clashes last year, on February 4, marking the resumption of suspended deliberations between the Centre and representatives from the Union territory. The meeting to be chaired by minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai will take place here as Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) continue to stick to their core demands, seeking constitutional safeguards and greater political autonomy for the Union territory created in 2019. Earlier, the Government of India in a letter to Ladakh chief secretary has informed that the meeting of the HPC will be held in the last part of January. "It is conveyed that next meeting of the High-powered Committee for the UT of Ladakh under the chairmanship of Nityanand Rai, minister of state for home affairs, Government of India (Gol) will be held on February 4, 2026 at 4 pm in Conference Hall Number 25000H, fifth floor, Kartavya Bhawan-3, MHA, New Delhi," Ruchicka Katyal, deputy secretary to the Gol/Member Secretary (HPC) said in a communication. In 2023, the Union home ministry formed a high-powered committee under minister of state for home Nityanand Rai to discuss ways to protect Ladakh's unique culture and language, considering itslocation and strategic importance. The panel, which included the members of the LAB and KDA- a collective of trade unions, tourist bodies, and religious and political groups - deliberated on protections for land and employment, and the empowerment of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councils of Leh and Kargil, and other constitutional safeguards. The charter of the HPC include examining "constitutional safeguards that could be provided to ensure the measures and protection". After the first communication about the HPC meeting in last week of January, Sajad Kargili, one of the members of KDA had welcomed the announcement. "While the announcement may have come later than expected, it is nonetheless a welcome step. We hope the forthcoming meeting will substantively address the core aspirations of the people of Ladakh-particularly the demand for statehood, inclusion under the Sixth Schedule, and serious consideration of the draft proposals submitted to the MHA by the #Leh Apex Body and the #Kargil Democratic Alliance," Kargili wrote on X. "Let's hope for best." he had said. The last meeting of the committee was held in May and another was scheduled for October 6. However, the October meeting was deferred following the September 24 clashes in Leh that killed four and left scores injured. The Ladakh leaders were demanding judicial probe into the Leh violence. However, a meeting between leaders of Ladakh and home ministry representatives took place in October 2025 for sub-committee level talks, where the Ladakh representatives had demanded an immediate release of all arrested leaders, including climate activist Sonam Wangchuck, the widely recognised face of the agitation....