Sonam Wangchuk Ends His 21-Day Hunger Strike

NEW DELHI: Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk ended his 21- day hunger strike to demand statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, on Tuesday.

Earlier Sonam Wangchuk made a fresh appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fulfil promises made to the people.

In a post on X, Sonam wrote, “21st Day OF MY CLIMATEFAST 350 people slept in – 10 °C. 5000 people in the day here. But still not a word from the government.

We need statesmen of integrity, farsightedness & wisdom in this country & not just shortsighted characterless politicians. And I very much hope that Narendra Modi ji and Amit Shah ji will soon prove that they are statesment.

Sonam Wangchuk, an engineer and education reformer, began his protest on March 6, demanding statehood for Ladakh. His protest on March 6 was held at an altitude of 3,500 metres with sub-zero temperatures.

He has been highlighting the damage from industrialization to the region’s fragile ecology and the impact on glaciers. One of his demands is the implementation of the sixth schedule to ensure land protection and autonomy for tribal areas in Ladakh. Gradually, his protest is gathering support and media attention across India.

In the last 20 days, Wangchuk said, around 60,000 of Ladakh’s 3 lakh residents have participated in the hunger strike demonstrating their pain but “no word came from this government.

Source : TOI