The Rajasthan state government has been on a roll when it comes to making poor decisions that are often draconian, the repercussion of which has been seen in the by-elections of the local bodies. The anger over issuing a gag order on the media had not cooled down when another move by the government caused an uproar and this time specifically amongst the students.
The Rajasthan College Education Directorate sent a circular to the 219 state-run colleges demanding that a strict uniform code is implemented among the students. The circular was sent out about a month ago. According to the circular, from the next academic session, boys will be required to wear shirts, trousers, shoes, socks and sweater (in winters) while girls will be required to wear salwar suits/sarees, shoes/sandals and cardigans/sweaters during winters. The officials reportedly said that the aim of implementing the dress code was to curb outsiders entering the college premises. However, this move has received lot of flak.
The decision has been criticised on various platforms. The move attempts to infringe on an individual’s right to freedom as enshrined in the constitution. By restricting the options to Indian clothing, there’s a clear imposition of a particular culture on the women students. While the men are being told to wear non-Indian attire as uniform, the females women have strictly been asked to wear Indian. This also makes the guideline patriarchal.
The imposition of a dress code snatches away the right of the students to express themselves in a world where gender roles are evolving. With time, more young people are reinventing themselves through the clothes that they wear. College as an institution of higher education not only teaches us theoretical matters but it’s also the space where you learn about the world and try and find your place in it. In a restrictive atmosphere wherein students aren’t allowed to wear what they feel like, a very important part of their identity formation is being away from them.
Globalisation has resulted in many of us in India adopting the technologies of the West while they adopt some of our age-old sciences of the Ayurveda and Yoga, to name a few. There’s an intermixing of cultures. Today, I might wear a Boho outfit (inspired by Bohemian culture) along with gladiator sandals (inspired by the Greek culture) and probably accessorise it with some Indian silver jewellery. You see, we’d all like to increase our choices and develop our sense of style as we wish. The guidelines by the state government are draconian and retrogressive in its true sense.
As far as implementing uniforms for curbing the influx of outsiders in the university, it’s a matter of security. The implementation of a set uniform does very little to strengthen security. There should be strict security posts at different entrances of each college. Each student should be provided with an identity card, the entrance to the premises should then be allowed only on the availability of the identification. This sort of security will address the aforementioned problem.
As a student at the University of Rajasthan, the outsiders, I can say, are mostly ex-students, ex-student leaders who are seen around the premises. The security situation does seem very bleak, but this problem can only be solved with some strict security measures. Manipal University, a private institute in Jaipur has extremely strict measures; any outsider is simply prohibited unless requested by a student or a member of faculty.
Educational institutions shouldn’t be used to implement poorly thought out plans. The implementation of a uniform will put an extra economic burden on the students. Subsidising the cost of the uniform is not a burden public universities should take, especially when the fees in most state-run institutions is negligible.
In the 21st century, it’s something to think about how rapidly the world is changing and growing, and here Rajasthan government is trying to implement a dress code to perpetuate patriarchal mores instead of finding a way of strengthening security.
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