The internet is going gaga over the Rajasthan government "imposing" uniform for students in government colleges. However, speaking to Edexlive, Minister of Higher Education of the state — Kiran Maheshwari — says that it is not something the government came up with. According to her, it was the students who demanded a dress code "to avoid outsiders from mixing with the college crowd". "There have been complaints that outsiders enter the college to disrupt the decorum. So, the students from various colleges asked us to provide them with uniforms. In addition, we have left it up to them to decide what kind of uniform they want to wear — it can be salwar kameez or pant shirt, it is totally up to the student committee," Maheshwari informs.
The minister also took this opportunity to make the fact clear that the rule "isn't compulsory for all the colleges". "All we have said is, we would like the students to have a uniform because it inculcates discipline on the campus. All said and done, it is totally up to the college students whether to take it or ignore it," she says.
The comments come after Department of College Education, Rajasthan released a circular on March 4, 2018 stating that "college students should decide on the uniform codes for the next academic year".
Maheshwari also doesn't quite understand why people are surprised. "This is not the first time this kind of rule has been imposed. For years, students have been wearing uniforms in many important colleges of Rajasthan. In fact, I have received praises from student union heads for facilitating this. I don't know who is spreading the rumour that students are against it," she says.
However, the move has got a lot of flak from liberals and students. People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) head Kavita Srivastav calls the move dated and redundant. "I feel this is really stupid. I don't know why they came up with this. There are various protests going on in Rajasthan against the move and I hope something good comes out of it," she says.
