No Jeans, T-Shirts In Office: UP District Magistrate's Dress Code Reminder

Employees and officials will not be allowed to wear jeans and t-shirts in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly District Magistrate's office. The district administration also warned that action will be taken against employees who violate the official dress code.

"Government employees and officers should wear formal attire (in the office) that makes them look like officers. Casuals can be worn outside. Written orders were issued several times regarding the dress code. Employees have been asked to stick to formal attire and not wear jeans and t-shirts in the office," said District Magistrate Shivakant Dwivedi.

Shivesh Kumar Gupta, an administrative officer, agreed with the directive and said that employees should wear formal clothes in the office.

"There is a provision of dress code. This is not a new thing. All the seniors in the office come in formal attire only. They never wear jeans. Some are our new colleagues wear jeans and t-shirts sometimes, but they have been instructed in this regard and they are adhering to it," he said.

"Everyone is happy with the dress code and we are not feeling that anything is different. We are not feeling that we are being forced to do this. This is a good decision as everyone should come in formal attire," said Mr Gupta.

Rahul Gangwar, an employee, said there should be a dress code as it's the District Magistrate's office. "If we wear casuals, it doesn't feel like an office. Decorum will be maintained if people wear formals," he said.

This is not the first time such orders have been issued by the authorities in an office. Similar directives were earlier issued by the Uttarakhand government as well.

Last year, the Maharashtra government banned its employees from wearing casuals in the state secretariat and government offices.

In 2021, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Subodh Kumar Jaiswal made it mandatory for all officers to come in formal attire to the office. "No jeans, t-shirts, sports shoes, chappals, and casual attire are allowed in office," the CBI director announced last year.