MP mulls dress code for school, college teachers

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh government is mulling to implement dress code for teachers in government-run schools and colleges in the state.

State higher education minister Deepak Joshi on Saturday indicated his government’s plan to enforce dress code for teachers to “make them as well as the people conscious of the teacher’s special place in the society”. “A dress code for teachers will make them conscious about their special place in the society. Besides, this will get them due recognition in the society”, Mr Joshi told the media.

This is the first time; a dress code for teachers in government-run schools and colleges in MP was being proposed.

The teaching community has hailed the state government’s idea of imposing dress code for them.

“We will not only get recognition in the society, but the dress code will also give us a sense of our responsibility”, Nirmala Deshpande, a teacher in a state government-run high school in Bhopal, told this newspaper.

Opposition Congress, however, saw a motive behind the state government’s move.

“It is a diversionary tactic by the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government to divert attention of the people from the brewing discontentment among the teachers and students over lack of infrastructure such as school buildings and adequate teaching staff”, a spokesman of the party said.

In fact, a government-run college has earlier tried to impose dress code for women faculty members prohibiting them from wearing western wears such as jeans. The college, however, was forced to withdraw the dress code following protests by the teachers.