Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said her government had decided that students’ uniforms of government and government-aided/ sponsored schools would display the Biswa Bangla logo so everyone knew where the uniforms came from.
The state government recently announced a colour code for the uniforms of the students from the pre-primary level to Class VIII of such schools and also said the uniforms would display the Biswa Bangla logo. “Here they find fault with everything we do. (They) have filed a case. They are arguing why we have decided to affix the logo of Biswa Bangla on uniforms. I don’t want to comment on the court proceedings. They (the court) will make their own decision. But tell me how can I forget the name of my Bengal?” Mamata said at a programme at Netaji Indoor Stadium to disburse an allowance for widows.
“And this (logo) is not intended for private schools. This is for government schools where I provide uniforms, shoes for free. Won’t they have a logo of the government? Where are they getting the uniforms from? They will speak about Bengal in pride across the globe. That is what Biswa Bangla stands for. This is the brand of the government.”
The All India Students’ Federation (AISF), a wing of the CPI, had on Monday moved the high court seeking a stay on the state government’s notification on school uniforms.
The petition has dubbed the order “arbitrary, illegal and ultra vires” to the Constitution. “Someone has moved the court saying this (Biswa Bangla) is the logo of the Trinamul Congress. They (the Left and the BJP) are not aware of anything. They love to associate everything with Trinamul. I myself crafted the logo and gave it to the government. We made laws so the logo remains with the government. I have myself designed maximum logos of the government. I don’t take any credit for that. This is my obligation,” the chief minister said.
Government schools can continue to use a badge of their own on the uniforms, the chief minister said.
“We don’t have any objection to that. But the uniforms will (also) display the logo of Biswa Bangla as a proof of the fact that the government has provided the uniforms. This will prove that we are residents of Bengal. If the government of India can affix a stamp of its own, why can’t the Bengal government affix a stamp in its name?” Mamata asked.
“The people of Delhi would have affixed their photos. We don’t do all that.”
The Telegraph had reported last May that a 74-year-old retired professor had refused to take the Covid vaccine to protest the fact that the vaccination certificate carried Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s picture.
Health check
Sanat Sanat Kr Sinha
A man gets his eyes checked at a health camp at Park Street Metro station on Wednesday.
Pailan College of Management and Technology on Wednesday organised health camps near Rabindra Sadan, Kalighat, Tollygunge and Kavi Subhash Metro stations on World Optometry Day.
The first camp was held at Sovabazar. Several Kolkatans, many of whom cannot afford such tests, received free spectacles and complementary medical kits at these health camps.
Free tests for random sugar, blood pressure, weight and ECG were conducted at the camps.
Sanat Kr Sinha