moral

Picture this. Pass outs from 12th standard are standing in a queue at a famous engineering college of Chennai for application forms. The Vice Chancellor himself is distributing the forms. After a few admission seekers receive their forms, it is the turn of a girl clad in smart denims. To her surprise, the Vice Chancellor refuses to give her one. The reason? The girl is dressed in jeans, informs the official! The girl pleads and is eventually given the application form but only on the condition that she swears not to wear jeans if she joins the college.

If this scene (based on a true life incident reported in a local Tamil daily and brought to our attention by one of our readers Gomathi Natarajan) shocks you, read on to know the state of affairs in colleges across the country.

'Moral parenting' and 'academic discipline' are fashionable phrases in college campuses these days. Managements swear by it and universities brandish massive power in its name. Insisting that students must dress 'decently' and modestly, many colleges have banned jeans, skirts, sleeveless suits, tight-fits, transparent outfits and, in some cases, even coloured or checked t-shirts!

"It's so frustrating, a total ban on something as comfortable as jeans is just not done and same goes for cell phones. Most of the colleges are located in the suburbs of metros; we need to keep in touch with our friends and families. And is it too much to ask? The management could have cracked down only on the wrongdoers. This whole moral parenting concept is actually annoying," says Ruchi Sharma, a physiotherapy student from Noida.







Freedom of expression?
From being denied the right to use cell phones on the campus, to being directed on what to wear, from being ruled on whom to talk and what to talk about and even where to sit, students are increasingly finding the learning atmosphere too stifling.

"You won't believe we have to pay fines for small things that can be categorized as personal preferences. Girls are given the ticket if they get their nose pierced or get a second piercing on the ear. Guys pay for trendy haircuts (how a teacher defines trendy is his or her personal viewpoint), coloured hair and even for chewing gums," whines Saurabh (identity changed on request), an engineering student from Mangalore.

"As a fresher I felt that college is the end of my social life. Then gradually the college restrictions encouraged me and my friends to find other places to chill and relax. And did we have a choice? I agree that these places might not be good for us. But now even the pubs declare after college hours as ‘happy hours’. We go and hang out in pubs and discs." says Bhavana, who is pursuing her Bachelor’s in computer applications, (identity not revealed on request).

Teacher's take

While students are protesting the unwelcome hurdles on the path to adulthood, what do teachers have to say? The answers are not surprising. Professors counter all such allegations by saying that indecent attire invites unpleasant public reactions and provokes sexual harassment of students. However, when asked about other restrictions imposed on students in the name of academic discipline, they don’t have much to say.







According to Dr. Giti Upadhyay, a lecturer based in Pune, “I think the management that makes these rules must be careful while policing such matters as they are sensitive issues and may violate freedom of expression. Many times, we as teachers, fail to acknowledge that the students are mature people with strong beliefs. I guess a fine balance is what we need.”

“This debate is just an example of the fast changing cultural shifts; whether we accept the changes or not depends on individual perceptions. The mantra as per me for both the policy makers and the students is - don't be strict and don't complain just be watchful,” she adds.

Dress code: A need or a restriction?

On the surface, the whole issue appears farcical and conflicting. At a time when Indian designers are making a mark in international fashion markets, academicians are discussing dress codes for college students!

But if we scratch the surface, the results get even better, to say the least.

“Clothing, especially women clothing, its style, length, cut and even colour have always been the favorite topic of discussions and debates. It's questioned sometimes by the politicians, sometimes by religious leaders, sometimes by self-elected moral police and now by academic disciples.” says Vinita Jagdev, a lecturer of economics at the Delhi University.

Vinita further exemplifies, “The French government insists that Muslim women should not wear headscarves to educational institutes. On the other hand, the Iranian government has ruled out that women should not only wear headscarves but also wear a chador (a robe, usually black, that covers the body from head to toe). A few months back, few maulanas issued a fatwa against Sania Mirza for wearing short skirts on the tennis court and now universities across India are in the race of imposing more than necessary rules on students to ensure the so-called appropriate form of attire.”





“To make matters worse, the penchant for dress code seems to have spread throughout the nation like jungle fire. As far as students are concerned, they find themselves helpless; there's nobody who can take up their side of the story with college and university bodies. They live under the constant fear of getting expelled,” she adds.

Unsolicited, but necessary!

But not every teacher thinks like Vinita Jagdev. Prof. V.L Aggarwal, a lecturer of accountancy at the Delhi University, strongly argues, “It's our duty to teach the students the difference between right and wrong, good and bad. Remember, we are responsible not only for shaping their future but also their minds, thought-processes. Moreover, no matter how modern we claim the society's outlook is becoming, it's still dangerous for girls to wear low-waist jeans with short tops.”

“Apart from the question of stylish dresses being socially acceptable or not, it is a known fact that too much of concentration on fashion and looks can affect studies. Not that it always happens this way, but children sometimes fail to draw the line.” Prof. Aggarwal asserts.

Prof. Aggarwal also states that the need to maintain an ‘even status’ amongst students is what makes it imperative to have such rules. “Kids who belong to rich families wear designer clothes and their friends who belong to lower-middle class wear ordinary clothes. This might result in inferiority complex and frustration in the not-so-well-off kid,” he says.





Are the students against a code? Not really!

So, even though colleges across the country are frowning at the supposed ‘lack of conduct’ and ‘unacceptable attire’, dress codes and other bans within the campus are now rules the students admit they have to live with. And seems like even the students are not against discipline; however, they want the implication process to be more humanitarian, rational and in their interest.

Supports Niyati Mehra, who is pursuing Bachelors in Business Administration in Gaziabad, “There should be dress sense, instead of a dress code. Certain kinds of dressing do convey sexual invitation. What we see on TV doesn't work in real life. It is important to dress austerely.”

Agrees Manya Verma, student of a college famous for its outlaws, “Even we understand that spaghetti and noodle straps are not meant for college wear. You wouldn’t go to a disco in a sari would you? But that doesn’t mean we are deprived of basic things and hundred types of unreasonable bans and fines are imposed on us.”

Students today are looking forward to a significant mindset change, a change that will ensure that their voices are heard. Respecting the concerns and thoughts of their educators, they just wish their colleges to be more progressive.

Will they be able to change the writing on the wall?

Do you think it would be correct to impose a restriction upon what one wears on the pretext of moral parenting and discipline?