Increase in school uniform prices worries parents

LAHORE: The soaring prices of winter uniforms for provincial metropolis’ schools and colleges have irked the parents. According to the information available with Pakistan Today, the prices of winter uniforms have increased by at least 20%.
The prices of sweaters, blazers, coats and track suits have gone up considerably as compared to those of the last year. Uniform shops owners have claimed that the prices are going up due to the overall rising inflation rate.
A student of Lahore College of Arts and Sciences (LACAS) Haleema Mirza said, “My parents have to fulfill the other requirements as well, as there are different sports kits, shoes and track suits for winters”. She said that her winter uniform’s shopping cost at least Rs 4,000. A uniform shop’s owner at Ferozpur Road Haroon Rashid said that the price of a full sleeve sweater for the students of Punjab Group of Colleges was Rs 430 last year, but, this year, it was touching Rs 500.
He said even though most of the students of aforesaid college came from the middle class family but still the prices were sky-rocketing. Mrs Saqib, who is a mother of three sons said that uniform was a must purchase item and her sons had never taken care of their clothes so they had to buy it every year.
She said that some schools even demanded a special get up for different functions like Halloween, bonfire and sports days which increased the misery of the parents.
Beaconhouse School System Regional Director Ali Raza told Pakistan Today that their schools had never insisted to buy fancy clothing. He said, “We just demand simple Bata and Service shoes which are easily affordable for most of the parents and our school admin have never insisted the students to wear expensive fashionable clothes”.
Parents said that the schools should take the responsibility of uniforms as neat and clean clothing represented the students’ personality and even their family.
They said if their children did not wear the clothes as demanded by the school, they could also become a victim of inferiority complex. They added that there was no mechanism through which the parents could lodge a complaint against these schools as Punjab government did not take any solid step to regularise the private schools.