The Higher Education Department under the Union Education Ministry has appointed noted academician Debabrata Das as the new Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University, ending a nearly one-year-long vacancy in the top post at the Central varsity.

A senior university official said that the Higher Education Department under the Union Education Ministry on Friday communicated the appointment of Debabrata Das, who is currently serving as Advisor to the Higher Education Department of the Assam government, as the Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University.

Das will become the 11th Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University.

According to the communication issued by the Higher Education Department, Das has been appointed for a term of five years from the date on which he assumes office or until he attains the age of 70 years, whichever is earlier.

"The terms and conditions of the service of Debabrata Das, Advisor, Higher Education Department, Government of Assam, as the Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University shall be those as outlined in the Act, Statutes and Ordinances, etc., of the University," the official communication stated.

The post of a regular Vice-Chancellor at Tripura University had remained vacant since the expiry of the tenure of the previous Vice-Chancellor, Prof. G. P. Prasain, on August 21, 2025.

Since August last year, the university's senior-most professor, Shyamal Das, has been serving as the officiating Vice-Chancellor of Tripura University.

Tripura University was established by the state government on October 2, 1987, and was later upgraded into a Central University on July 2, 2007, under the Tripura University Act, 2006, enacted by Parliament.

Besides its large number of academic and teaching departments, the university has a large network of affiliated colleges and institutions across the state.

At present, as many as 68 colleges and institutions in Tripura are affiliated with the university.