Agartala: Tripura’s Higher Education Minister, Kishor Barman, announced a major relief for students, stating that all who have cleared the Class 12 state board examination will be admitted into government degree colleges. This assurance comes in the wake of widespread student protests over admissions, particularly at Ramthakur Degree College in Agartala.
Barman’s statement on August 10 aims to calm the situation and provide clarity on the admission process. He clarified that while admission is guaranteed, students might not secure their preferred subjects or colleges due to the high demand. This year, over 24,000 students passed the higher secondary exams, while the state boasts 33,000 college seats.
To accommodate the influx of students, the minister has directed principals of Agartala’s degree colleges to increase their seat capacity. The admission crisis escalated after a professor at Ramthakur College was suspended for allegedly forging the principal’s signature to illegally admit more than 100 students. However, Principal Papri Das Sengupta maintained that the college has already exceeded its capacity and that admissions were strictly merit-based through an online portal.
The minister distanced the education department from the college’s internal affairs, stating, “The department has nothing to do with what had happened outside the campus.” This development is expected to alleviate the anxiety among students and parents across the state who were struggling with the limited seats in preferred colleges.
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