Tripura forms panels on TTAADC land rights and low-enrolment schools

The Tripura government has formed two committees, one to examine land-related issues in areas under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) and another to look at merging schools with very low enrolment into quality residential schools, Northeast Now reported on Sunday.

Both decisions follow discussions between the state government and Tipra Motha founder Pradyot Kishore Debbarma.

Land committee

A Revenue Department notification issued on November 6 set up the land committee. It will be convened by the Secretary of the Tribal Welfare Department, with the TTAADC Chief Executive Officer as a member. The Secretaries of the Home and Revenue departments, an Additional Secretary of Revenue, the Director of Land Records and Settlement, and the council's Principal Officers for land records and for law are also on the panel.

Debbarma said the joint committee had been agreed in talks with the authorities. He described the land rights demand as being about protecting the identity, interests and future of indigenous communities, and said it was not aimed at any particular section of people. He called for dialogue and said the concerns of all stakeholders should be considered.

Schools committee

The School Education Department has formed a separate panel to examine merging very low-enrolment schools in the council area with high-quality residential schools, and to look at rationalising teacher deployment. It is convened by the Secretary of School Education and includes the TTAADC CEO, the Home Secretary, the Directors of Elementary Education and SCERT, and the council's education officials.

Debbarma said quality residential schools had been among the key demands Tipra Motha raised with the state and the Centre over the past two years, and that better facilities would help children from the council areas compete at the highest level.

Political backdrop

The moves come soon after village committee elections in which the BJP and Tipra Motha contested together after years of friction at the grassroots, following an intervention by the BJP's central leadership. The two parties have been allies since before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when the tripartite Tiprasa Accord was signed. Its implementation remains a central demand for Tipra Motha.

The TTAADC covers about two-thirds of Tripura's area and is governed under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.