IAS officer asks students to clean their toilets in Telangana, National SC commission issues notices

Indian Express

02-06-2025

The National Commission for Scheduled Castes Sunday issued notices to the Telangana chief secretary and the director general of police regarding the alleged derogatory remarks against SC Gurukul students by IAS officer Dr V S Alagu Varshini, seeking an action-taken report within 15 days.
Varshini, Secretary, Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TGSWREIS), sparked controversy with her remarks regarding Gurukul school students in an audio clip that went viral recently. The incident occurred a week ago when the IAS officer reportedly directed school principals to incorporate cleaning duties, including tidying toilets and hostel rooms, into the students' routine at welfare hostels and classrooms.
While the IAS officer stressed that there was nothing wrong with students in Gurukul schools cleaning toilets and tidying their own rooms, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and former secretary of TGSWREIS Dr R S Praveen Kumar asked the chief minister if his children washed the bathrooms of the school they were studying in. While demanding her sacking, he said the officer was discriminating against Dalit students studying in the Gurukul schools. 'These orders of an IAS Officer, Dr Alugu Varshini ji are utterly outrageous and reflect the manuvadi mindset of many in bureaucracy. She is even threatening the parents who question such 'reformatory' orders!!!,' he posted on X.
Congress government's anti-poor attitude is reflected in this shocking behaviour by an official, at Social Welfare Gurukul Society.
The evidence of which is available in the audio clip !!
Each social welfare school was granted Rs 40,000 per month during the BRS rule for hiring… pic.twitter.com/GcDfgKHXBl
— Kavitha Kalvakuntla (@RaoKavitha) May 28, 2025
Sharing the purported audio clip on X, BRS MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha said, 'Congress government's anti-poor attitude is reflected in this shocking behaviour by an official, at Social Welfare Gurukul Society.' Stating that each social welfare school was granted Rs 40,000 per month during the BRS rule for hiring four temporary workers for cleaning tasks, she alleged that this has been stopped by the Congress government starting May this year.
She further said, 'The government has also done away with having assistant caretakers in the 240 schools, forcing the students to take up the role of wardens and manage kitchens. Now the officer is Forcing children to clean toilets in schools !!'
According to Kavitha, the statements go against the concept of establishing Gurukuls to protect students from marginalised communities from caste and class bias. 'This behaviour is discriminatory, exploitative, and violates basic principles of child rights and dignity. It only reflects Revanth Reddy's government's anti-poor, anti-Dalith attitude !! I demand the government to immediately take steps to remove the officer and start giving the required funds to run the social welfare schools properly,' she wrote.
In the purported audio, the officer justified her statements, saying that these students hail from extremely poor backgrounds and should learn how to take care of themselves even while at home.
'If they have to do roti making, they will do roti making. Very good. They must do the room cleaning. Who will clean their rooms? Once, the sweeper will do… Why can't they clean their own toilets? What is wrong it it… This is the growing phase of a child. I cannot give luxury. Then after the 11th and 12th standards, the child will go and sit, the parents may not be there to take care of them. Saying I don't know how to cook and I know only about studies as a useless person is not acceptable,' the officer can be heard saying in the audio shared by Kavitha.
In another audio, which the officer herself shared with the media, she appealed not to politicise the issue involving students and take her words out of context. Terming the allegations of a lack of sanitation staff as baseless, she said children helping parents at home is a 'normal day-to-day activity' and helps them grow as an 'aware individual'. 'If you go abroad or go to another state, you have to do your own day-to-day work. Cleaning the rooms, washing the bathrooms, and washing clothes need to be done by oneself while also focusing on studies. The sudden transformation usually takes time for children. These are certain muscle memories,' she added. The officer was not available for a comment despite repeated attempts.
Rahul V Pisharody is an Assistant Editor with the Indian Express Online and has been reporting from Telangana on various issues since 2019. Besides a focused approach to big news developments, Rahul has a keen interest in stories about Hyderabad and its inhabitants and looks out for interesting features on the city's heritage, environment, history culture etc. His articles are straightforward and simple reads in sync with the context.
Rahul started his career as a journalist in 2011 with The New Indian Express and worked in different roles at the Hyderabad bureau for over 8 years. As Deputy Metro Editor, he was in charge of the Hyderabad bureau of the newspaper and coordinated with the team of district correspondents, centres and internet desk for over three years.
A native of Palakkad in Kerala, Rahul has a Master's degree in Communication (Print and New Media) from the University of Hyderabad and a Bachelor's degree in Business Management from PSG College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore. Long motorcycle rides and travel photography are among his other interests. ... Read More