Leh district

Leh is one of the two districts located in Ladakh, the other being the Kargil District to the west, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is the largest district in India in terms of area. It is bounded on the north by Ghanche District (Gilgit-Baltistan), a small border with Xinjiang, China, via the Karakoram Pass which is part of the district. Aksai Chin and Tibet are to the east, Kargil district to the west, and Lahul and Spiti to the south. The district headquarters is based in Leh. It lies between 32 to 36 degree north latitude and 75 to 80 degree east longitude.

The whole of Ladakh was under the administration of Leh until July 1, 1979, when the Kargil and Ladakh administrative districts were created. Religion has been a source of grievances between Buddhists and Muslims since the late 20th century and was a contributor to this division.

Demographics

According to the 2001 census, the 'Total Fertility Rate' in Leh district is the lowest in all of India, at 1.3 per women. In neighbouring Kargil district, the TFR is 3.4. The 'Total Birth Rate' was 10.02 per 1000 people in 1995-2000 period. The 'Natural Growth Rate' was 0.62% per year implying a 'Total Death Rate' of 3.78 per 1000 people. The birth rate in some remote areas have plummeted to the lowest anywhere in the world. For example, in Diggar village in the Nubra Valley, only 5 children were born during the...
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