GR on second uniform for govt school students issued, photo released

With this, students will have two sets of uniforms as has always been the case—one provided by the state and the other by the local school management committee (SMC). Until a week ago, there was uncertainty in schools after the government announced that students would have to make do with only one uniform this year.

Mumbai: The confusion regarding government school uniforms for this academic year was finally cleared on Thursday with the issuance of a government resolution (GR) and the release of a photograph of the new uniform provided by the state: a light blue shirt and dark blue trousers for boys and a light blue shirt and dark blue pinafore for girls.

GR on second uniform for govt school students issued, photo released

With this, students will have two sets of uniforms as has always been the case—one provided by the state and the other by the local school management committee (SMC). Until a week ago, there was uncertainty in schools after the government announced that students would have to make do with only one uniform this year.

Free uniforms are provided by the state for reserved category students and all girl students in government and aided schools. For this, schools are given a fund of ₹600 for two uniforms per student, and the latter are distributed through the SMCs at the school level.

The confusion over uniforms this year was set in motion by the government’s ‘One State, One Uniform’ policy, under which it had plans to dress over 64.28 lakh government school students from Classes 1 to 8 in the same uniform. The exercise was to begin from this academic year but following practical problems due to the very late decision and petitions from uniform manufacturers, it was decided that students in government schools would get two different uniforms for this year: one from the state, which would be the same in all schools, and the other to be decided by the SMCs.

Last week, the government sprang a shock on students, parents and teachers when a letter from the Maharashtra Primary Education Council director stated that students would have to make do with only one uniform this year, since instead of providing funds for two uniforms, only ₹300 for a single uniform would be given to the SMCs this year. The decision on the second uniform was kept in abeyance.

Barely eight days before the reopening of schools, the GR has, much to the relief of parents and students, made it clear that the SMCs will have to provide a second set of uniforms to students. The uniform chosen by the state will be used for scouts and guides training, which is set to become a mandatory subject in all government schools. Students will thus wear this uniform on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, and a uniform decided by the SMCs on the remaining days.