Zero Success Despite Crores Spent on Coaching: No Candidate from Tripura in UPSC List, Six from Conflict-Hit Manipur

By Our Correspondent

Agartala, March 7, 2026

Despite spending crores of rupees every year from the state exchequer to send students for UPSC coaching outside Tripura, the result has once again been disappointing this year. Not a single candidate from Tripura has figured in the final list of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination, while six candidates from politically volatile Manipur have successfully cleared the prestigious examination.

The UPSC declared the final results of the Civil Services Examination 2025 on March 6, 2026. A total of 958 candidates have been recommended for appointment to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and other Central Group A and Group B services.

At the national level, Anuj Agnihotri secured the All India Rank (AIR) 1, followed by Rajeshwari Suve M at AIR 2 and Akansh Dhull at AIR 3.

However, the absence of any candidate from Tripura in the list has raised serious questions about the effectiveness of the state government’s UPSC coaching initiative. Every year, several students from Tripura are reportedly sent to coaching centres outside the state with full financial support from the government. The scheme involves spending several crores of rupees annually.

Even this year, the Tripura government has reportedly decided to spend around Rs.9 crore to send about 100 students to coaching institutes outside the state for UPSC preparation. Despite such huge expenditure, the programme has yet to produce any notable success.

The issue has become even more striking when compared with neighbouring Manipur, which has been facing prolonged political and ethnic unrest. Yet, six candidates from the state have managed to clear the UPSC Civil Services Examination this year, bringing pride to the state.

Educationists and coaching experts in Tripura argue that the government’s current approach needs serious review. They point out that several successful candidates from Tripura in the past had prepared largely through local coaching centres. Many aspirants who trained locally managed to clear the UPSC preliminary stage, and some even succeeded in the final examination and joined elite services such as IAS, IPS, IFS and IRS.

Experts suggest that a more practical strategy would be to strengthen local coaching infrastructure and train students within the state for the preliminary examination. Those who qualify could then be sent to reputed coaching institutes outside Tripura for advanced preparation for the mains and interview stages.

However, critics allege that the current system lacks transparency. The process through which students are selected and coaching institutes are chosen remains unclear. Some observers have alleged that certain external coaching institutes may be benefiting from government funds through undisclosed arrangements.

There have also been allegations that some of the students selected for the government-sponsored UPSC coaching programme struggle even to clear screening tests conducted for the Tripura Public Service Commission (TPSC).

In view of these concerns and the repeated failure to produce results, voices are growing louder in Tripura demanding a thorough review and investigation into the government’s UPSC coaching scheme and the utilization of public funds. Many believe that strengthening merit-based selection and developing quality coaching facilities within the state could significantly improve Tripura’s performance in India’s most prestigious civil services examination.

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