Elderly resident Dolma from Leh’s Polo Ground area described the desperate situation facing local families, emphasizing that while adults can manage without regular meals, babies requiring milk face critical nutritional challenges during extended supply disruptions. She urged the administration to provide at least one-hour daily relaxation of restrictions to enable essential food procurement, noting that residents remain uncertain about when normal supply chains will resume operations. The elderly woman’s testimony illustrates how security measures can inadvertently create humanitarian concerns in isolated mountain communities dependent on regular supply deliveries.

Rajendra Singh, a Jammu native living in Leh on rent, echoed similar concerns about dairy availability while highlighting the broader impact on daily wage laborers and tourists who face additional challenges during the restrictions. Singh specifically requested government intervention to establish daily one-hour curfew relaxations that would enable families to purchase essential food items including milk and vegetables. His account demonstrates how movement restrictions affect not only permanent residents but also migrant workers and visitors who may lack stored emergency supplies.

The dairy supply crisis stems from violent protests on September 24 that resulted in the burning of a BJP office and subsequent heavy security deployment throughout Leh district. Administrative restrictions now prohibit assemblies of five or more persons and require prior written approval for any processions, rallies, or marches, effectively shutting down normal commercial activities including dairy distribution. The security response followed tensions over climate activist Sonam Wangchuk’s detention under the National Security Act, with protesters demanding Ladakh’s inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution for greater tribal area autonomy.