From Protest to Preparation: How Tripura’s Youth Can Compete for India’s Top Government Jobs
Jayanta Debnath
June 9, 2025
The recently published UPSC 2025 results have once again underscored the grim reality of unemployment and lack of competitive preparation in Tripura. Among the 1009 successful candidates nationwide, only one name from Tripura appeared- Kenneth Chakma, who qualified for the Indian Forest Service (IFS). Incidentally, he is the son of Uttam Kumar Chakma, an IAS officer from the state.
Masters in Applied Geology from IIT, Mumbai, Keneeth is currently working as senior Geologist in Geological Survey India.He is a JRF and GATE qualified.He studied in Holy Cross School of Agartala upto class X then cleared class XII from Vikas, Vishakhapattanam.This year was his 5th attempt in UPSC (main).He will join along with other all India service officers of 2025 in September in LBSNAA Mussoorie for foundation course, then Indira Gandhi national forest academy in Dehradun.
While states like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and even the Northeast's Assam are celebrating dozens of entries into the top 100 and top 500 ranks, Tripura’s presence in national level exams continues to be marginal at best.
This gap is not just numerical but deeply structural. A closer look reveals that while youth from other Indian states are rigorously preparing for UPSC, IBPS, SSC, CPMF, Railways, CDS, and other central government services, many in Tripura are still trapped in a cycle of protest, disappointment, and political agitation. Local media coverage often focuses on the desperation of terminated teachers, unemployment rallies, and public outcry, but little is being said about a long-term solution through serious, focused preparation.
Why Tripura youths are Failing to compete nationally? My honest and careful observation is that, main factor that contributes to this bleak scenario is 'most students and unemployed graduates in Tripura remain unaware of the evolving demands and patterns of UPSC and other national level exams. There is a severe gap between their current preparation and what is expected.
Absence of systematic coaching culture: While metro cities and even smaller towns in Bihar, Rajasthan, or Maharashtra host powerful coaching ecosystems, Tripura has very few centers dedicated to high-quality UPSC or IBPS training.
Over-dependence on State Government Jobs: A significant number of aspirants still depend solely on state level exams, which are inadequate in number and scope. Central government services, offering more vacancies and wider scope, remain largely untapped. The Tripura youngsters have high potentials, quality, merit and dedication but the same are largely unutilized because of unplanned approach and lack of guidance. Those who aim to reach a target and make continuous effort with proper guidance, come out successful. The state government and intellectuals of the state may advance plan and action for the future generation of Tripura.
Lack of Mentorship and Motivation: Without successful role models or structured guidance, most candidates don't know where to start or how to stay consistent and to go ahead.
Cultural and Political Distraction: As senior advocates and renowned consumer activists Amrit Lal Saha and educators like Abhijit Bhattacharjee observe, the youth of Tripura and West Bengal are becoming "nationally irrelevant" due to over-involvement in political affairs instead of building competitive spirit and skillsets. According to Sekhar Dutta, a distinguished journalist of Tripura, to break this cycle of inefficiency and re-establish Tripura on the national map of merit and talent, young aspirants must act decisively. Preparation for UPSC, SSC, IBPS, or CDS should ideally start from the final year of graduation.
How do the youths of Tripura break the barrier and succeed in national level job exams ? In this regards I also talked to Tripura’s many renowned educationist and former Tripura public service commission (TPSC) member like Dr BK Kilikder, Retired High Court Judge Justice SC Das and several others. According to them, to achieve success in the central government jobs exams the youths of Tripura should have a preparation strategies, and Identify their weak areas to Improve them.
Mostly Tripura’s Bengali speaking students and youths are lagging behind for lack of language proficiency which has to be developed and a strong command in English and Hindi has to be achieved as most national exams require working knowledge of both English and Hindi languages. If any one studies the finer nuances of mother tongue minutely and applies it in life he or she may easily become expert in any other language.
Experts also suggest that, the youths who want to secure success in national level job exams should stay away from political distractions. Protests and agitations might express emotion, but they don't bring jobs.
I do firmly believe that, it is already proven that there is no dearth of talent in Tripura when it comes to competing in national and international arenas whether it's the field of sports or any other discipline. Despite limited resources, many youths from Tripura have made the state proud by cracking some of the toughest competitive examinations, securing prestigious positions in sports and many other fields across the globe.
Notable among them are Dipa Karmakar in gymnastics and Sanatan Talukdar, who achieved success in the UPSC examination and were directly selected into the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). Similarly, Debapriyo Bardhan, Tarit Chakma and very recently Kenneth Chakma have successfully joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), overcoming challenges through their relentless dedication.
Beyond civil services, Tripura’s youths have marked their presence in elite scientific institutions like ISRO, DRDO, and even at NASA, with several young minds contributing to critical innovations and research. Moreover, many talented individuals from the state are working in multinational companies across sectors, including the aviation industry, where some have made their mark as pilots on international routes.
What’s most inspiring is that these achievements have come primarily through self-effort, family support, and personal determination. Most of them succeeded without any structured support or consistent policy assistance from the state government.
This strongly indicates that Tripura has immense potential to produce more such achievers, not just nationally, but on the global stage. What is urgently needed is a permanent, government backed scheme or mission focused on:
1. Intensive training for national-level exams like UPSC, SSC, Banking, Defence, PSU, etc.
2. Scholarship and coaching support for scientific research jobs in ISRO, DRDO, BARC, and similar institutions
3. Career counseling, soft-skill training, and grooming for global corporate and aviation sectors
4. Partnerships with reputed coaching institutes and online platforms to ensure accessibility for all deserving youth, especially from rural and tribal areas
If such a comprehensive, long-term initiative is launched and implemented sincerely, Tripura can emerge as a leading talent hub, and the number of successful candidates from the state in national and international job fields will multiply significantly.
The achievements of individuals like Sanatan Talukdar, Debapriyo Bardhan, Tarit Chakma and Keneeth Chakma are not isolated stories, they are powerful symbols of what Tripura’s youth are capable of. Now, it is time for the Tripura Government to step forward and institutionalize support, ensuring that every dream has a path.
The Role of the Government of Tripura: The Tripura Government must recognize that unemployment will not be addressed through ad-hoc recruitment drives or local self employment schemes alone. Some urgent actions include: Setting Up Central Competitive Coaching Institutes and dedicated UPSC, SSC, Banking, and CDS coaching centers with local help with quality faculty must be established across districts. Subsidized residential coaching like those in Bihar and Telangana can transform participation.
Scholarships for Competitive Preparation: Tripura’s tribal and economically weaker SC and OBC students should get merit-cum-means scholarships for national exam preparation, especially for civil services more.
Host Motivation and Career Counseling Seminars: Every college and higher secondary school should conduct career awareness sessions on national opportunities.Create a Public Registry of Successful Candidates: Displaying the success stories of candidates from Tripura can inspire the next generation.
Final Thoughts: A Wake-up Call for Tripura’s Aspirants:
The time for outrage alone is over. Tripura’s youth must realize that every year, over 1 crore candidates compete for a few thousand central government jobs. It’s a national battlefield, not a local grievance platform. Unless a cultural shift occurs from protest to preparation, from emotional outbursts to academic discipline, Tripura will continue to remain a marginal player in India’s bureaucracy, administration, and public services.
As Kenneth Chakma’s success shows, it is possible. But it requires sacrifice, strategy, and relentless dedication. Tripura must produce not one, but hundreds of such success stories each year and the journey should be begins today
There is no dearth of talent in Tripura, and the latest proof of this is the remarkable success of Sagar Datta Majumdar, a distinguished student of School of Science, who has cracked the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2024, one of the most prestigious and competitive examinations in the country.
Sagar has secured All India Rank 317 and has been recommended for appointment to India’s top administrative services including IAS, IPS, IFS, and Central Services Group A & B. His achievement is a moment of immense pride not only for the School of Science but also for the entire academic community and the state of Tripura.
A resident of Krishnanagar, Nutan Palli, Agartala, and an alumnus of Ramakrishna Mission, Viveknagar, Sagar completed his graduation with Physics Honours from the University of Delhi. He had scored 95% in both his Class X (2014) and Class XII (2016) board examinations. He joined School of Science in 2022 for preparation of TCS/TPS Gr-II, where he secured 1st rank in Tripura Civil Service Gr-II Examination 2024 before his UPSC success.
Sagar’s accomplishment is a testament to his dedication, perseverance, and academic brilliance. It also highlights that students from a General Science background and a remotest psrt of the country can excel in public administration and contribute significantly.
( Writer is a senior journalist and Editor Tripurainfo.com)
(Tripurainfo)
more articles...