Tribal Welfare Minister’s Absence From Tirthamukh Mela Guest List Fuels Debate Amid ST Student Protests and Multiple Allegations

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, January 13, 2026

The exclusion of Tribal Welfare Minister Bikash Debbarma from the official guest list of the Tirthamukh Mela (popularly known as Dumboor Mela) has sparked widespread discussion across political, administrative and tribal circles, particularly in the backdrop of multiple allegations and ongoing controversies surrounding the Tripura’s Tribal Welfare Department.

The Tirthamukh Mela, one of Tripura’s most significant tribal religious and cultural events held at the confluence of the Raima and Saima rivers near Dumboor Lake in Gomati district, features an extensive list of invitees including the Chief Minister, senior ministers, MLAs, ADC representatives, district-level officials and several Scheduled Tribe (ST) leaders closely associated with tribal welfare and development. The absence of the minister heading the Tribal Welfare Department, however, has been viewed as a striking and unusual omission.

The issue gained further traction following a recent agitation by ST college students at the Tribal Welfare Department headquarters in Gurkhabasti, where students demanded the immediate release of long-pending stipend dues.

During the protest, the agitating students told the media on camera that during a deputation submitted earlier to the minister, he allegedly stated that officers within his own Tribal Welfare Department take illegal money for the execution of departmental contract and schemes. According to the students, the alleged remark was made by Minister himself while explaining the reasons behind persistent delays in stipend disbursement.

The disclosure, made publicly and repeated during the agitation programme, has intensified scrutiny of the department’s internal functioning.

Apart from the stipend issue, several allegations have surfaced against the Tribal Welfare Minister and some mid-level officers of the Tribal Welfare Directorate, close to Minister, centring on the award of departmental contract works allegedly in exchange for money.

One of the most cited cases involves the online coaching programme for students residing in tribal hostels, where the contract was allegedly awarded to an unprofessional company, raising serious concerns over transparency, quality and adherence to established norms.

Sources within the department further allege that the controversy extends beyond the coaching programme. Several contract works under World Bank–assisted projects ( TRESP) are also alleged to have been illegally awarded to selective people’s and companies, allegedly bypassing proper procedures. These decisions, sources claim, have created internal dissatisfaction and controversy within the department, with sections of officers reportedly raising objections over the manner in which such contracts were finalised.

Despite the seriousness of the allegations and the students’ public disclosures, no official clarification has so far been issued by the minister or the Tribal Welfare Directorate.

Likewise, the organisers of the Tirthamukh Mela (Dumboor Mela) have not explained the reasons behind the minister’s absence from the official guest list.

Political observers note that while no formal link has been officially established, the timing of the omission, coming close on the heels of repeated allegations and public protests, has inevitably led to speculation.

Tribal leaders, student bodies and civil society members have stressed that the matter now goes beyond protocol and politics and calls for institutional transparency and accountability, especially as the department handles welfare schemes crucial to the tribal population.

“When students make such disclosures on camera and multiple allegations emerge regarding departmental contracts, silence from authorities only deepens public mistrust,” said a senior tribal observer.

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