Uttarakhand sets up state minority education authority to replace Madrasa Board

The Uttarakhand government has moved to restructure oversight of minority education by setting up the State Minority Education Authority, which will take over the functions of the Madrasa Board once its tenure ends in July this year.

A notification issued by Parag Madhukar Dhakate, special secretary to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, stated that Governor Lieutenant General Gurmit Singh (retd) has approved the creation of the authority along with the appointment of 12 members, including the chairperson.

He said that all members belong to minority communities, with Surjit Singh Gandhi named as chairman.

The members include Rakesh Jain, Syed Ali Hamid, Pema Tenzin, Elba Madrile, Robina Aman, Gurmeet Singh, social worker Rajendra Bisht, and retired officer Chandrashekhar Bhatt.

The authority will also include the directors general of school education, the State Council of Educational Research and Training, and minority welfare as ex officio members.

The decision follows the passage of the Uttarakhand Minority Education Bill 2025 in August last year. The bill received the Governor’s assent in October.

Under its provisions, the Madrasa Board will be abolished from July 2026, and the State Minority Education Authority will be constituted to bring all minority educational institutions under a single regulatory framework.

The legislation expands minority institution status beyond the Muslim community to include Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian, and Parsi communities. Previously, such recognition was limited only to institutions run by the Muslim community.