The Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL) has decided to provide only cloth for the second set of uniforms, instead of stitched uniforms, for students in government and aided schools, under the Vidyavikasa scheme in Karnataka.
Each student in Karnataka gets two sets of uniforms from the State Government. Normally, the State Government would provide cloth for the first set of uniforms. Parents have to stitch uniforms at their own cost. Later, DSEL would release ₹250 per student for classes I to 10, to the joint account of the headmaster and School Development and Monitoring Committee (SDMC), who would get a second set of uniforms stitched for every student locally.
This year, instead of releasing funds for the second set, DSEL has invited tenders for cloth that will be distributed to all students. The contract has been awarded to a Maharashtra-based company. Later, parents have to get the second uniform stitched, at their own cost, just like the first set.
Parents allege violation of Karnataka High Court order
Parents and SDMCs have alleged that this move violates the 2019 Karnataka High Court order in Master Manjunath vs Union Of India case. The court had ordered that the government provide stitched uniforms for the second set.
Umesh G. Gangavadi, State president for SDMC Association, said they were mulling over filing a contempt petition in the High Court.
Burden on parents
“With the cooperation of SDMCs, we were providing good quality, stitched uniforms to students, which served as their second set of uniform. The cost of cloth and stitching were included in the ₹250 that we got from the government for each student. Now, the department has decided to provide cloth for the second set of uniforms, and this will be a burden for parents,” said a government school headmaster.
“Today, the stitching cost is more than the cost of cloth. Stitching charges for a set of shirt and trousers is around ₹350. I have already borne this for stitching the first set of uniform for my son. We demand that the government provide stitched uniforms for the second set,” said Annapurna, parent of a class 8 student in Bengaluru.
Concerns over quality of the cloth
Not only that, concerns remain over the quality of cloth supplied for the first set every year. Last year, several officials were suspended over the low quality of cloth supplied for the first set.
“Every year, we see complaints of low quality of cloth for the first set of uniforms supplied by the department through a Statewide tender. Recently the government suspended some officers, and put some firms, accused of supplying low-quality cloth, in the blacklist,” Mr. Gangavadi said.
Shortage of funds forced government to change process
Cauvery B.B, Commissioner, Department of Public Instruction, cited shortage of funds for the decision to provide cloth even for the second set of uniforms for the academic year 2022-23.
“As per Samagra Shikshana guidelines, the second set of uniform has to be distributed only to girls, students of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) and Other Backward Community (OBC) from classes I to 8. However, the government decided to provide stitched uniforms to all students from classes I to 10. But this year, a decision was taken to provide cloth due to shortage of funds,” she said.
