Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University (TMBU) is a state public university located in Bhagalpur, Bihar, India. Named after the tribal freedom fighter Tilka Manjhi, the university serves as one of the principal centres of higher education in the eastern region of Bihar, offering undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programmes through its constituent and affiliated colleges spread across several districts.
| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University |
| Type | State public university |
| Location | Bhagalpur, Bihar, India |
| Named after | Tilka Manjhi (tribal leader and freedom fighter) |
| Country | India |
The university takes its name from Tilka Manjhi, a Santhal leader regarded as one of the earliest figures to lead an armed resistance against the British East India Company in the late eighteenth century. The choice of name reflects the strong association of the Bhagalpur region with the history of tribal resistance and the wider Santhal community of eastern Bihar and Jharkhand.
Bhagalpur, situated on the southern bank of the Ganges, has historically been a centre of learning, trade, and silk production. The establishment of a university in the city was intended to consolidate higher education across the surrounding districts, which include parts of the Anga region.
The university offers programmes across the faculties of arts, science, commerce, social sciences, education, law, and management, along with research leading to MPhil and PhD degrees. Teaching is delivered through university departments based on the main campus and through a network of affiliated and constituent colleges in and around Bhagalpur.
The main campus is located in Bhagalpur city. The university administers academic, examination, and research activities for institutions falling under its jurisdiction in the eastern Bihar region.
As one of the older state universities in Bihar, TMBU plays a major role in providing accessible higher education to students from Bhagalpur and the surrounding districts, including those from rural and tribal backgrounds. The naming of the institution after Tilka Manjhi is itself notable as part of the wider recognition of tribal contributions to the Indian independence movement.