Parliament passes bill to set up central tribal university in Telangana

The proposed institution will promote advanced knowledge by providing instructional and research facilities in tribal art, culture and customs and advancement in technology to the tribal population of India.

New Delhi: The Parliament on Wednesday passed a bill to establish the Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University in Telangana after a nod from the Rajya Sabha.

The Upper House passed the The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2023, by voice vote in the absence of opposition members who had earlier staged a walk-out to press for their for a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on the security breach in the Lok Sabha.

The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2023, was cleared by the Lok Sabha last week.

Replying during the debate, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the establishment of a central tribal university in Telangana is obligatory under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.

In Andhra Pradesh, a tribal university has been set up already and the campus has started functioning, he said and added, "If the Telangana government had co-operated at the right time, this university would have come up by now. They took a long time to provide land, so there was a delay in the implementation."

According to the statement and objects of the Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2023, the establishment of the Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University will cater to the regional aspirations for years to come.

The proposed institution, it said, will increase access and quality of higher education and facilitate and promote higher education and research facilities for the people of Telangana.

It will also promote advanced knowledge by providing instructional and research facilities in tribal art, culture and customs and advancement in technology to the tribal population of India.

"Apart from bringing focus to tribal education, the central tribal university shall carry out all educational and other activities like any other central university," it read.

The Central Universities Act, 2009, was enacted to establish and incorporate universities for teaching and research in various states. The law is tweaked from time to time.