Tripura High Court Seeks TTAADC Affidavit on Single-Teacher Schools, Vacancies and Contractual Appointments, Matter Listed for November 16
By Our Correspondent
Agartala, October 6, 2026
The Tripura High Court has directed the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) to file a counter affidavit addressing serious allegations regarding teacher shortages in schools located in the tribal areas, including the reported existence of a large number of single-teacher High Schools and Higher Secondary Schools.
The direction was issued by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao and Justice S. Datta Purkayastha in WP(C)(PIL) No. 09 of 2026, Court on its own motion versus Union of India and Others, by an order dated October 1, 2026.
The High Court observed that several schools are situated in areas under the jurisdiction of the TTAADC and, considering its role in the administration of these schools, decided to implead the TTAADC, represented by its Chief Executive Officer, as a party respondent in the PIL. The Court subsequently issued notice to the autonomous district council.
The Court has specifically granted time to the TTAADC to submit a counter affidavit explaining the allegations concerning the existence of a large number of single-teacher High Schools and Higher Secondary Schools. The Council has also been directed to provide detailed data on the number of teacher vacancies in such schools.
Importantly, the High Court has also sought an explanation from the TTAADC as to why teachers are being engaged on a contractual basis instead of making regular appointments against the existing vacant posts. The Court's direction places the issue of teacher availability and recruitment in TTAADC-administered areas under judicial scrutiny.
Court Highlights Nearly 9,000 Teacher Vacancies
The latest direction comes against the backdrop of the High Court's broader concern over the shortage of teachers in Tripura's government schools. According to the additional affidavit filed by the State Government, the services of 9,756 teachers had been terminated pursuant to directions of the High Court that were approved by the Supreme Court.
The State Government also informed the Court that 2,672 teachers in Secondary Education and 3,021 teachers under the Directorate of Elementary Education retired between 2018-19 and 2023-24. As a result, by the end of 2023-24, there were 15,449 teacher vacancies. Against these vacancies, the authorities recruited 1,471 Graduate Teachers for Classes IX-X, 444 Post Graduate Teachers for Classes XI-XII, 88 Special Educators, 3,615 Graduate Teachers for Classes VI-VIII and 1,041 Undergraduate Teachers for Classes I-V — a total of 6,659 appointments. The Court noted that this left a backlog of almost 9,000 teacher posts.
High Court Expresses Concern Over Slow Recruitment
The Bench also expressed concern over the pace of teacher recruitment. The Court noted that the Teachers' Recruitment Board, Tripura had issued an advertisement in September 2025 for only 700 Graduate Teacher posts and had not issued any advertisement in 2026 for other teacher posts at that stage.
The Court observed that when there is such a substantial gap between existing vacancies and the number of posts being filled, the State Government was required to show greater urgency in filling the vacant positions. The Bench urged the State Government and the TRBT to take steps to fill the remaining vacancies at the earliest so that children in the State have access to adequate numbers of teachers and proper education.
Teacher Shortage Linked to Government School Concerns
The High Court further observed that the absence of teachers on the scale highlighted in its order would inevitably affect the condition of government schools. The Bench noted that while steps appeared to have been taken to increase enrolment and strengthen infrastructure, the shortage of teachers remained a serious concern.
The Court also observed that blaming parents for choosing private schools could not be an answer to the problem when government schools continued to face a substantial shortage of teachers.
Infrastructure Gaps Also Under Court Scrutiny
Apart from teacher vacancies, the High Court also examined basic infrastructure in government schools. Referring to UDISE data for 2025-26, the Court noted that electricity connections were available in 84% of schools, while drinking-water facilities were available in 4,048 out of 4,144 government schools.
The Bench stated that there ought to be 100% availability of electricity connections and drinking-water facilities in government schools. It also noted that toilet facilities were available in 90% of schools for girls and 92% of schools for boys, directing that these gaps be bridged immediately.
TTAADC Asked to Explain Position
The TTAADC will now have to place before the High Court specific information concerning single-teacher High Schools and Higher Secondary Schools under its jurisdiction, the number of vacant teacher posts in those institutions and the reasons for relying on contractual teachers instead of filling regular posts.
The case has been listed for November 16, 2026, when the TTAADC's response is expected to be considered by the Court.
If you want, I can also make this into a stronger newspaper-style report with a sharper headline focusing on the TTAADC teacher shortage and contractual appointments.
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