IIT Bombay to use khadi Uttariyams for convocation

The Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay has chosen Khadi uttariyas, the traditional white piece of cloth, for their convocation ceremony. Khadi ia a “national symbol”, IIT-Bombay director Devang Khakhar has said. The institute has ordered 3,500 uttariyas made of honeycomb cotton Khadi. Students will drape the piece of cloth around their neck and over their clothes to mark the occasion. Khadi had been at the centre of Mahatma Gandhi's struggle. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has repeatedly been exhorting the public to increase the use of the fabric. This year, the Gujarat Technological University had made Khadi compulsory for its convocation. “The IIT Bombay chooses khadi as their convocation robe. After Gujarat University, khadi has made a niche in the hearts of the authorities of the premiere institute,” said a statement by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium enterprises. Traditional dress of kurta-pyjama has long been the dress code for the convocation in the IIT. Khadi has now been added. In July 2015, the University Grants Commission issued a circular to all the universities and affiliated colleges to consider using handloom for ceremonial dresses for convocations. The move, however, sparked opposition from many students such as those at the University of Hyderabad. They termed the decision a Hindu imposition to saffronise education.


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