Dress code for Orissa’s women teachers deferred by six months

BHUBANESWAR - Orissa has extended the dress code deadline for its high school women teachers - maroon saris with Sambalpuri borders - till the beginning of the next academic year as adequate fabric is not available, an official said Sunday.

The state school and mass education department had asked the high school teachers to follow the dress code from this month. The male teachers were to wear white shirts and black trousers.

“We have extended the deadline for six months for women teachers as the saris are not available,” the department’s secretary Aparajita Sarangi told IANS.

The saris to be worn by at least 20,000 women teachers in state’s 3,558 high schools were to be supplied by the state textile and handloom department.

However, Sarangi said the male teachers should follow the dress code.

Orissa first introduced a dress code for girls in government colleges in 2005. The girls have been wearing salwar kameez and the boys full-sleeved shirts and trousers in the colours left to be decided by the college authorities.

Last month, a dress code was introduced for the elementary and upper primary schools. While male teachers wear black pants and sky blue shirts, woman teachers wear in pink saris and black blouses.