Jammu/ Srinagar, May 2 -- Amid protracted agitation by the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule safeguards, Union home minister Amit Shah asserted that the Narendra Modi government continues to prioritise Ladakh's development. "Before 2019, there were only 1,800 km roads in Ladakh but it has now gone up to 4,040 km, which means doubling the road network. Since 2019, the Centre has constructed 72 bridges recording a three times increase," he said in his speech at the Central Institute of Buddhist Studies in Leh on Friday. He said Ladakh has emerged as a model of rapid transformation since the 2019 bifurcation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. "Mobile towers rose from 344 to 653, helipads from 7 to 41, snow clearing machines from 7 to 215 and electricity distribution transformers from 1,182 to 3,153. I mentioned these figures to convey how the PM and his government have been focusing on Ladakh," Shah said. He referred to five new districts that have been created to ensure all-round and equal development of the vast region. He said that Ladakh now has seven districts and 193 panchayats, with five new districts. "The region has remained at the centre of the central government's development agenda", he said. "We want that the border UT becomes self-reliant and I express gratitude to the people of Ladakh because whenever sovereignty of India is threatened here, security forces reach later but the people of Ladakh are the first to take the bullets of the enemy," he said. "The history of Bharat Scouts is known to the entire nation. The patriotism of people of Ladakh and love for the nation is praised by every Indian citizen," he said. He said Ladakh's budget has risen from Rs 1,000 crore when it was part of the erstwhile J&K state to Rs 6,000 crore now. Ladakhi groups have been raking up the demand of statehood, sixth schedule and release of 83 people, who were arrested post-September 24 violence in Leh that left four people dead and 100 others injured. Shah, on the final day of his two-day visit to Ladakh, inaugurated the historic exhibition of Lord Buddha's sacred relics in Leh on Buddha Purnima and addressed a large gathering on the occasion. Calling Ladakh region a land of living dharma, Shah said the return of sacred relics of Lord Buddha to the Himalayan region after a gap of 75 years was a "historic reunion" and an auspicious day for the people. "The arrival of the holy relics in Ladakh remind us that the Indian civilisation has given the message of peace and existence in togetherness from thousands of years. In a region like Ladakh and Kargil, this message gets more relevant. This legacy tells us that amid conflict and disorder, only the path of peace and compassion can provide us a solution," Shah said. "I hope that the Indian knowledge, the message of Lord Budhha, is understood and accepted by the whole world and they move forward on a path of solution and accept the middle path while moving ahead," he said. He virtually laid the foundation stone of a 10,000 litres per day dairy plant in Kargil and launched a series of dairy development initiatives for Ladakh....