Government mulls Himachal model to regulate land ownership.

The Centre is all set to provide protection to domiciles of Jammu and Kashmir in government jobs, educational institutions and land rights, a senior government official said on Friday.

The Centre is exploring the option of implementing the mandatory requirement of continuous stay in the region for a minimum of 15 years before applying for a job in government sector and admissions in schools and colleges in the Union Territory of J&K.

On August 6, Centre had revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 and Article 35A of the Constitution and downgraded and bifurcated the State into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.

The two provisions of the Constitution that were revoked, let the J&K legislature decide the “permanent residents” of the State, prohibiting a non-J&K resident from buying property in the State and ensuring job reservation for its residents.

The official said special provisions were being examined on the lines of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The provisions pertain to regulating ownership and transfer of land to conserve the limited resources available for development.

The regulations also ensure that the State preserves its unique identity.

There are 12 States including Himachal Pradesh where provisions of special status under Article 371 of the Constitution apply.

The Hindu had reported on December 14 that Centre was considering a proposal to grant special status to J&K.

After the new UT of J&K was carved out, several groups in Jammu expressed concerns about losing special status and apprehension of losing land and jobs to outsiders.

“We are examining who will issue the notification, whether Centre or the J&K UT administration,” the official said.

Earlier, a Home Ministry official had denied that Jammu would be granted a UT status separately.