This new, more functional uniform is aimed at convenience at work. ``It will be voluntary for nursing staff to switch to Punjabi-style chudidar. But those who want to continue with the saree can,'' said a senior health department official.

Besides, the health department has selected various colors of chudidar or saree for different categories of nursing staff. While it will be white color for the hospital nursing staff, it will be biscuit-colored for the gazetted staff, which includes chief matron, matron, district public health nursing officers or principals of female health-workers' training schools.

Similarly, it will be different colors for the nursing teaching staff. While demonstrators of nursing colleges will don Punjabi chudidars or sarees of violet color, nursing tutors or public health nurses will don skyblue uniforms. Nursing staff at community health centres will have a slight variation in their dressing code: unlike other nursing staff which will be required to wear an apron with the Punjabi chudidar, this staff will wear the dress with a dupatta.

But nursing students will have a rather different colors of chudidar. While students of BSc (nursing) will put on a pink chudidar, the girls studying in the general nursing course will don Punjabi dress of white material with navy blue check patterns. But this does not mean there will be no dress code for male nursing staff. Male nursing staff will wear trousers and shirt of relevant color, depending upon which category they belong to.

Interestingly, each employee of the nursing staff will wear a name-place showing his or her designation. These name-plates are designed in such a way as to identify the nursing staff's category and rank. For example, chief matron's name-place will be black with white letters, that of demonstrator will be white with blue letters. Head nurse's name-plate be red with white letters and female or male staff nurse will have their mane-plates in navy blue with the letters in white.

And the nursing staff is sure elated about the change. ``This long-pending demand was solved by the new health minister as soon as he assumed office,'' said Swati Pandya, president, Trained Nurses Association of India, Gujarat Branch.

Praising the shift from saree to Punjabi dress, she said, ``Our hospitals are congested, and wearing a saree increases the risk of an accident. Besides, public opinion also favours Punjabi dress.''

For about 10,000 nurses, this will be a welcome change. The nursing employee gets Rs 125 uniform allowance and Rs 75 washing allowance per month.