The tamilnadu government has lately been beset by peculiar problem sporadic cases of female teachers eloping with their male students. But more peculiar than the problem has been the advice given by teachers’ associations on how to deal with it draping female teachers in lawyer black robes to make sure that students feel no sexual attraction for them.
The advice came after two romances appeared in the news. On March 31, a 26 year old teacher of a government aided school in Kadayanallur ran off with a 16 year old boy. About a fortnight later, a 22 year old female teacher at a tutorial college in Dindugal district eloped with a 20 year old.
Troubled by these affairs, the government set up an informal committee and called in teachers’ associations for discussions. These were their recommendations to avoid such dalliances in the future: black lawyer's gowns for female teachers in corporation schools, a ban on carrying mobile phones to classrooms, and perpetual CCTV surveillance to preclude any blossoming student-teacher love affairs.
