Who is paying the extra fee for the Vidyajyoti scheme in Tripura?

Tripura’s government launched the Vidyajyoti scheme in 2022 that stipulates the transitioning of government schools from the Tripura Board of Secondary Education to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). Through Vidyajyoti, the state government aims to raise the standard of education and provide students with modern facilities. However, the schools are now charging each student INR 1,000 per annum as development fees to upgrade and maintain the schools, which is becoming a cause of concern among people from low-income families.

“It’s difficult for us to pay INR 1,000 every year,” shared a parent in Agartala.

Deepak Kundu,* an official from the Vidyajyoti wing of the Directorate of Secondary Education, explained, “The development fund is managed through a joint account with the subdivisional magistrate and the school.”

He added, “The fee is intended to address the various needs of the school such as payment of wages for water carriers and cleaners. It can also be used for urgent repair work, procuring safety tools, conducting training programmes to help teachers become equipped with the CBSE pattern, and organising seminars and workshops for the overall development of the students and the school.”

Reena,* principal of a Vidyajyoti school in Agartala, shared, “We need to take permission from the subdivisional magistrate to access these funds. It’s only after their approval that we can utilise the funds for the specified needs.” She added, “In every class in our school, an average of five to six students have had their development fees waived.”

While many families are finding the development fees to be an additional burden, Deepak mentioned that the principal of the school can waive the development fees for any student after a discussion with the school management committee (which includes parents). But none of the parents I spoke with were aware of any such provision. 

Mira,* a class 11 student from the school managed by Reena, said, “Annually, we pay more than INR 1,000 including various other fees, but we didn’t know there was a system that allowed the fees to be waived for marginalised families.”

The students’ experiences vary across the Vidyajyoti schools. Ratul,* a class 8 student from another school in the city, said, “The school authorities told us that if we are having trouble paying the development fees, we can pay INR 500 instead of 1,000.”

*Names changed to maintain confidentiality.

Anupam Sharma is an IDR Northeast Media Fellow 2024–25.

—

Know more: Learn how Jan Aadhar is becoming a barrier to women’s education in Rajasthan.

Do more: Connect with the author at neanupam@gmail.com to learn more about and support her work.