In the area surrounding Cossipore, where a 15-year-old boy was fatally hit by a bus while on his way to school on his bicycle, schools are cautioning students not to pass a bus on the right, regardless of whether it is stationary, and to avoid competing with other cyclists.
On Monday, WWA Cossipore English School, where Aranya Chakraborty studied in Class IX, organised a condolence meeting during the school assembly. Students and teachers observed a minute’s silence in his remembrance.
The boy was hit by a bus on BT Road.
“After the tragic incident that took the life of a teenager in our neighbouring school, we have been talking to our students to adhere to traffic rules. We have told them not to race each other on a cycle,” said Krishna Kumar Dubey, the principal of Kendriya Vidyalaya Cossipore.
The two schools are located within a stone’s throw of each other, and children in both institutions reach school by bus, carpools and bicycles.
At Kendriya Vidyalaya Cossipore, students are being told about traffic rules and the importance of following them during both the assembly and in their classrooms.
“When they see a stationary bus (at the signal), on many occasions, students try to overtake it both from the right and left of the vehicle, which is risky. They should not overtake from the right because suddenly, if the bus starts moving, chances of an accident are high,” said Dubey.
The principal said students on bicycles were also being warned against performing stunts on the road, something that many see as a show of bravado.
“We have told our students that they should not leave the handrail while riding a bicycle,” said Dubey.
“Over two days, we have sensitised our students and told them to also pass on the message to their parents. We have to admit that on many occasions, parents or carpool drivers are at fault because they are in a hurry,” said Dubey.
Students must have a “cushion of five to 10 minutes” so they are not in a rush to reach school on time, teachers in both schools said.
WWA Cossipore English School will organise a session with their students on “road awareness” this week.
Students need to be aware of the risks of riding a bicycle on a busy road, principal Abhijit Ray said.
“Even when they are travelling in a bus, they should not be standing near the gate. They should wait for the bus to stop and then get off the vehicle,” said Ray.
At the condolence meeting on Monday, teachers who taught Aranya spoke about the teenager.
Many of his peers were in tears.
“He had more than 90 per cent attendance in school.... He was a quiet boy.... It is a
terrible thing to have happened, but we have to be strong,” a teacher told the assembly.
Aranya was part of the winning team in the school’s inter-house cricket tournament a few days ago.
“The incident has shaken us. We always tell our students to try to be extra cautious. We will be discouraging them from coming to school on bicycles,” said Sudeshna Chattopadhyay, vice-principal, WWA Cossipore English School.