Agartala, February 3, 2024: The Scheduled Caste Welfare Department of Tripura organized a merit award ceremony for the Scheduled Caste students who excelled in the secondary and higher secondary examinations of 2023. The event was held at the Rabindra Satabarshiki Bhavan here in Agartala city on Saturday.
The department conferred the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Special Merit Award, gold medals, certificates and books to nine students who secured the top 10 positions in the state board exams. The award also included a cash prize of Rs 25,000, which was transferred to the students’ bank accounts.
In addition, 471 students who passed the first division in the exams received 1,500 rupees each, while 244 students of class IX who achieved the same feat got 700 rupees each. The total number of beneficiaries was 715.
The chief guest of the ceremony was Sudhangshu Das, the minister of Scheduled Caste Welfare. He praised the achievements of the students and urged them to follow the path and ideology of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian constitution and a champion of the rights of the Dalits and the backward classes.
He said that Dr. Ambedkar’s life and struggle inspired the whole world and that he fought uncompromisingly to eliminate prejudices, caste system and oppression in India. He also said that Dr. Ambedkar took the initiative to make the education system accessible to everyone and that education is the backbone of the nation.
He informed that the state government has taken various initiatives to radically change the education system and to provide quality education to all. He mentioned the introduction of Vidyajyoti School, PM Shri School and the New National Education Policy in different blocks of the state. He said that the main reason for these steps was to ensure that the children of the state do not lag behind in education from the children of different big cities of the country.
He also said that the Scheduled Caste Welfare Department has undertaken multifaceted projects for the welfare of the Scheduled Caste students, such as developing boarding houses and educational infrastructure, providing pre-matric and post-matric scholarships, and helping those who want to study experimental courses like medical, engineering, nursing, pharmacist, agri B.Sc, veterinary.
The guest of honour was Haridulal Acharya, the acting president of the West Tripura Zilla Parishad. He also congratulated the students and appreciated the efforts of the department. He said that the state government has taken the initiative to provide education to all.
The welcome address was delivered by B.S. Mishra, the principal secretary of the Scheduled Caste Welfare Department. He gave details about the various projects of the department and thanked the minister for his support and guidance.
The director of the Scheduled Caste Welfare Department, Asim Saha, the chairman of the Tripura State Cooperative Consumer Federation Ltd., Tuton Das, and other officials, students, teachers and parents were present at the event.
Before the start of the program, the guests paid tribute to Dr. Ambedkar by placing wreaths on his portrait.
