Agartala: Tripura chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Tuesday said he would take all necessary initiatives to develop Tripura University on the lines of Nalanda University.

Addressing a gathering at Maharaja Bir Bikram auditorium on the university premises on Tuesday, Deb said people abroad still know India for its excellence in education during the days of famous ancient Indian universities like the Nalanda Vihar.

"It is my dream to develop Tripura University like Nalanda University where all facilities would be available for imparting and receiving education," Deb said after inaugurating Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya National Mission on Teachers and Teaching programme at the university.

Deb asked the authorities to chalk out a plan that would develop the university's academic activities and assured he would personally take up the issue with Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar. Tripura University was ranked low in last year's university accreditation rankings and was reported to have been one of the 11 under-performing universities in the country. The university authorities, however, refuted the reports and said efforts were being taken to augment academic facilities.

Tripura University vice-chancellor Anjan Kumar Ghosh said faculty members would be trained under the new programme, which would empower them to impart better education to students.

On Tuesday morning, Deb visited the chief minister's residential quarters on Marx-Engels Sarani here, where Manik Sarkar lived till five days back.