Moral Morons!

I saw above video in a friend's orkut account and it touched such a raw nerve in me- because I went to one such institution.Although, in retrospect, things were much better back then- heck I am married to my best friend from college!and I am not an anomaly- I have many friends who are married to their classmates :)

Here are some of the MORONIC rules these so-called Moral policemen have come up with.

1) Girls and Boys cannot talk

According to them, this is the root cause of all evil.Seriously, how can you expect engineering professionals to study in such an environment and then survive in the competitive-cut throat world, where communication and Marketing are the key things for survival?
The sad part is most students in these colleges come from non-urban areas. They grow up in conservative homes and don't have public speaking skills. The professional colleges, which are supposed to be the places where these soft skills are nurtured, curb them further and bury the students with inhibitions!
These are mature 18 and 19 year olds , who are budding professionals ,for God's sake!
It is very sad to see that the college watchman has more respect from the management, than the engineers in the making!

There was this very very conservative professor( I don't want to call a teacher stupid- hence the restraint) who was handling a lab for my class in our third year of engineering.Once the whole class was in the lab , after hours , at around 7pm, because we had to catch up on some microprocessor assignment.The power went out.

Guess what she did?

She made all the girls go outside the lab because- and this was her own words- she did not want any "mishaps" with the boys! How cheap and perverse can you get? What does she think of the students? This was most humiliating for us and more so for the guys! After our final year, were asked to give feedback on the professors to the principal. My friend and I went up to him and narrated this incident to him and told him that professional students should be treated with some amount of dignity. His response- "its for the girls' safety".YUCK!

In all my years in India, I have never been eve teased or physically pained by any guy in my class or anyone younger than 25 for that matter. It has always been the middle aged perverts!Heck- I have had some teenager or 20-something whistle at me or throw a comment or two- never anything vulgar .

Some of the best friendships(with guys) I made are from college.I know of so many guys and girls in my class who are still good friends.

2.Dress code

I do agree that there has to be some amount of decency in the clothes you wear to school/college- but mandating that you wear salwars WITH dhupattas pinned! That is so stinking sexist! What are they trying to tell us? That the boys ( and teachers?) are vulgar ogres who are out there only to ogle at you?ARGH!

We had a cultural club in college - for all the inter collegiate competitions, girls would get "western " costumes and would even dance with guys! What hypocrisy I say!

I don't know where these Moral policemen came from? maybe from the 18th century?

Although these things make my blood boil, there were a couple of things I really appreciate.

1. No ragging on campus

I joined college two years after the whole Navarasu case happened. It was such a rage back then.So, this rule was actually a relief.We did have some "controlled" ragging in our department initiation- it was fun and safe.I think all colleges should adopt this.

2.No smoking/drinking on campus- even visitors

I so agree with this one-I know kids can sneak things through and I know that there are other places where they have access to it- but this is one step in the right direction.

On one hand, we have our country progressing leaps and bounds economically - on the other hand,some people are just taking us backwards in time-to the 18th century.. no make that 14th century!