Uttarakhand Higher Education Minister Dhan Singh Rawat (twitter.com/drdhansinghrawa) Uttarakhand Higher Education Minister Dhan Singh Rawat (twitter.com/drdhansinghrawa)

Uttarakhand Higher Education Minister Dhan Singh Rawat on Tuesday said that convocation gowns will not be allowed for university convocations in the state. “In the upcoming convocation ceremony at the Sri Dev Suman Uttarakhand University in Tehri, Garhwal, we will, for the first time, introduce a cultural attire in place of the gowns. A cap that reflects the tradition of Uttarakhand will also be worn during the ceremony,” Rawat said.

He added that from 2018 the new “cultural attire” will replace the gowns. He said the issue will be addressed accordingly in case of objections from the University Grants Commission or the Centre’s Higher Education Department. He added that the state government has asked the National Institute of Fashion Technology to design a convocation dress that “reflects the culture of Uttarakhand and of the country”.

The minister’s comments came a day after Chief Minister Trivendra Rawat refused to wear the traditional convocation robe at Dehradun-based University of Petroleum and Energy Studies’s convocation. The chief minister had suggested that a “purely Indian attire” must be designed for convocation ceremonies.

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