As the special five-day session of Parliament commences on September 18 in the new building, a big sartorial shift will be noticeable in the uniforms of the Lok Sabha secretariat staff. Out go the safari suits. Instead, House Officers will be seen wearing cream coloured mandarin collared shirts with pink lotus flower prints running vertically on them, sources privy to the livery change told businessline.

The use of the lotus motif in the uniform may draw criticism since it is BJP’s party symbol and Parliament cannot be seen to be partisan, feel former Parliament officials. The staff will also sport maroon sleeveless jackets over the shirt. Khakhi trousers will complete the attire, sources said.

No longer uniform

Interestingly, the new dress code will see a segregation in attire for different categories of staff. Earlier, everyone uniformly wore the same safari suit. Now, the Parliament Security Service (Operations) will sport a different outfit. They will abandon their old blue colour safari suits and be seen in army camouflage pattern fatigues, said sources. The CRPF’s Parliamentary Duty Guard (PDG), looking after the outer periphery security of Parliament building, would however continue to wear their usual uniform. 

Designed by NIFT

Reports suggest that the new uniform has been designed by the National Institute of Fashion Technology. As yet, it’s not clear whether these are gender neutral uniforms or whether women staff will get a separate outfit.

 An internal circular issued by General Store Branch of LS Secretariat last Tuesday said: “All the uniform entitled Officers/officials of the Parliament Security Service (Operations), House Officers (including Verbatim Reporting Service) and Chamber Attendants/Attendants should collect their individual attires on September 6”.

The new uniform was supposed to have been commissioned when the new Parliament building was inaugurated by the PM on May 28, this year. But it got delayed. Former staff at Parliament say they cannot remember such a radical shift in uniform being stitched up earlier.

The special session will begin in the old building on the first day of the session on September 18 and the House proceedings would move to the new building the next day on the auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi.  Mock drills are happening in the new building to ensure that both the Houses conduct their businesses smoothly.

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