Earlier this yr, the largest college in Parulia recognized a “menace” that “saved spreading” amongst its college students. Decided to deliver it below management, college authorities started a marketing campaign and convened a sequence of conferences.
The results of that marketing campaign? Barbers within the city in West Bengal’s Purba Bardhaman district have agreed to not give “quirky” haircuts to college students of Parulia Kul Kamini Excessive College.
Performing headmaster Subrata Samanta says, “Six-seven months in the past, we realised that unusual and quirky haircuts amongst our college students have turn out to be a critical menace. From cricketers to footballers, college students copy their hairstyles. However these will not be suited to college college students. It was just like the spreading of a illness. What had been restricted to senior courses began to even be seen in junior courses. Initially, we had requested such college students to go away the category, and later we issued a discover to everybody. Nonetheless, the menace saved spreading.”
The varsity twice issued notices on the difficulty, as soon as on June 11 after which on July 6. “All college students should have first rate haircuts after they come to highschool. If the hair close to the ears could be very brief, then double that measurement might be allowed in the midst of the top. Nonetheless, quirky haircuts is not going to be tolerated,” a discover learn.
In August, the college additionally held a gathering with the guardians of sophistication 10 and 11 college students concerning the matter.
Established in 1951, the government-funded college has turn out to be generally known as the most effective within the area, with college students recurrently figuring within the prime 20 in state board examination rankings. Final yr, college students from the college received twelfth and 14th ranks within the class 10 board exams. It is usually one of many greatest faculties within the space, with 3,100 college students – cut up practically evenly between girls and boys.
Having recognized the haircut “menace” as a serious situation this yr, the college determined to take extra proactive steps after the notices didn’t have the specified impact.
“Because the menace continued, we thought: ‘Why not a correct marketing campaign?’ The primary a part of the marketing campaign was to strategy native barbers, hairdressers, and salon house owners,” performing headmaster Samanta mentioned.
Together with Maths trainer Subrata Acharya, Samanta went to 2 close by barber retailers to debate the difficulty. Finally, they known as a gathering of native barbers, for which round 36 hairdressers, salon house owners and barbers got here to the college on October 24.
Acharya says, “We defined to them that this can be a prestigious college, the place college students get good rank in each secondary and better secondary board exams. We have to have self-discipline.”
The Maths trainer mentioned the barbers expressed their helplessness within the matter when college students and even a few of the college students’ guardians request such haircuts. “It’s their bread and butter,” Acharya mentioned of the barbers’ argument.
Nonetheless, all native salon house owners and barbers ultimately agreed to offer solely “first rate” haircuts to college students and to refuse if they’re requested for extra quirkier types.
Madan Sil, the proprietor of a neighborhood salon and the Parulia Samabay Salon Homeowners Affiliation, says, “We have been shocked when the headmaster approached us. We instructed him that if considered one of us doesn’t do it (give a unusual haircut to college students), then another person will in an effort to get prospects. College students, and even their guardians, present footage of sportsmen like Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, and lots of others who we have no idea. However we’ve got to chop their hair like that.”
He mentioned, nonetheless, that the barbers understood the difficulty raised by the college. “We have now respect for the college. We understood and agreed that all of us should unite and cease such haircuts. Now, when college students from that college come, we refuse such haircuts,” he mentioned.
On the identical time, he made clear that the Parulia salon house owners affiliation wouldn’t be held accountable if the scholars received haircuts in different areas. “Many college students stay in numerous areas of Bardhaman and might get haircuts there,” Sil mentioned.
The varsity plans to proceed its marketing campaign. Its subsequent transfer is a mega consciousness convention the place dad and mom, guardians, academics, native intellectuals, in addition to barbers and salon house owners might be invited to participate.
“In December, we’re planning an consciousness drive the place guardians, barbers and others might be known as. We don’t have a corridor that may accommodate everybody, so we’re planning on doing it in a neighborhood subject,” the performing headmaster mentioned.
A guardian who has two kids within the college mentioned she supported the marketing campaign. “It is a good initiative, and will have been executed way back. It’s true that such weird haircuts have turn out to be the norm. We, guardians, are additionally accountable. There must be some decency in a scholar’s look. As for me, I’ve two sons finding out in that college, and so they have by no means been pulled up for his or her haircut. I’ve made certain they’ve first rate haircuts,” mentioned the guardian, who requested to not be named, saying she didn’t need any issues from the various different guardians who’re in opposition to the marketing campaign.
In 2019, two different faculties in Bengal had taken comparable initiatives. One was the Nayaput Sudhir Kumar Excessive College in Purba Medinipur, which appealed to native barbers to offer solely regular haircuts to college students. The opposite was the New Farakka Excessive College in Murshidabad, which organised a “sensitisation workshop” on haircuts, the place native barbers and even cops have been invited.
