BENGALURU : Walking down the drives of Mount Carmel College may not be all that colourful anymore, after the college has decided to put in place a uniform for the pre-university students. Beginning this academic year, the students will sport pants, shirt and a sleeveless overcoat. The new rule has garnered mixed reaction from students, both from within the college, as well as outside. City Express spoke to youngsters about the to-be-implemented rule and found that while a group of them feel that they don’t need ‘identical suits to be disciplined’, a larger group is relieved to know that they won’t have to over-think what they’d wear every day.
20-year-old Neha Gowda, a student feels that uniforms would prevent discrimination based on attire.
While she agrees that some students wear improper outfits on campus, this rule would reduce such instances. Interestingly, all 20 responses from the students we spoke with, pointed to the need for some level of restrictive dressing on campuses. In fact, 50 percent of them agree that uniforms are necessary to maintain discipline. “Uniforms are actually required because it makes everyone uniform,” says Theeshtha SM, a student of Dayanand Sagar Engineering College.
For many others, the uniform rule comes as a relief with them not having to undergo the daily struggle of figuring out what to wear. “Otherwise, we constantly have to worry about finding the perfect outfit to wear every day. And some students dress like they are going for a party. Implications of certain rules regarding the length of the dress and banning of the see-through tops should be done at least inside the college,” opines Jennifer J, a pharmacy student. Would she support a rule of this kind at her college. “Of course,” she says.
Ashin Varghese, a student of Jyothi Nivas College feels that after wearing uniforms for 12 years of school, it is really required in college. “I don’t think uniforms are needed in colleges because it is the only place after years of schooling, where we get to wear casuals,” he says pointing out that he will protest the rule if it ever comes into force at his college. Notable alumni’s have also shared their reaction. “As a former Carmelite, I am shocked because the college has always been about freedom and giving a platform to prove themselves,” says supermodel Nicole Faria, a 27-year-old model ,who was also part of the fashion team. She adds: “Putting them in uniforms just means that they will lose their individuality.” She further explains that there are other ways to discipline the students such as adding restrictions on outfits to avoid improper dress code.
Renowned singer Vasundhara Das also expressed her dismay on the subject. “I am not a big fan of enforcement and I don’t think this is the right way to go about it,” she says. “Individualism is very important where one must be allowed to show their creativity and it starts with how they present themselves,” she further adds. The latter was also upset on the management having to control what young women have to wear, which also sends a wrong message to the younger generation. (Inputs from Pragya Dwivedi, Neetimoni Gogoi, Mythilli Bhat, Veena Ramchandra)