Tripura government begins process to convert two institutes into full-fledged universities

NEW DELHI: Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Monday said the government is contemplating converting Women's College, Agartala and Tripura Institute of Technology into two universities to expand higher education scope in the northeastern state. Founded in 1965 at the heart of the city, the college is the first institute for women, and offers two streams- Science and Arts. The erstwhile Tripura Polytechnic Institute (TPI) was elevated to Tripura Institute of Technology a few years back.

While speaking at a government programme, the chief minister said, "The government is contemplating converting Women's College and Tripura Institute of Technology into full-fledged universities to expand the scope for higher education in the state." Saha said the higher education department has already begun to implement the government's plan to turn the two institutes into separate universities.

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Tripura expanding medical education

Asserting that the northeastern state is gradually becoming an educational hub, the chief minister said the state used to get only a few MBBS seats earlier, but now the number has gone up to 400. At present, the state has one government medical college, one society-managed medical facility and a privately run institute. "Now, Tripura Government Dental College has 63 BDS seats. The council of ministers has approved proposals for new universities in the state," he said, without elaborating how many proposals were given the green signal.

Currently, the northeastern state has Tripura University, a central varsity, one state government-run MBB University, apart from some private universities. The state also has National Law University (NLU), National Forensic Science University (NFSU), Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) and National Institute of Technology (NIT).