Cuttack, Jan. 31: The Regional Transport Authority (RTA) wants the assistance of the state education department to ensure safety of schoolchildren in private vehicles, including buses that the school authorities hire for study tours and picnics in different parts of the district.
In the new Policy on Transport of School Children, 2016, there are no guidelines on what safety measures should be adopted for transportation of students on buses that are hired for picnic and study tours.
As a result, there is always a risk on the safety of the students as most schools depend on private buses for taking children out on various outdoor activities.
The move comes in the wake of the recent bus accident near Tangi in which more than 10 students of a private school were injured on Saturday. The authorities of Swami Vivekananda Vidya Vihar in Mahanga block had hired the private bus for taking 30 students to take part in a talent hunt in Cuttack when the incident occurred on NH-16 within Tangi police limits.
"We will send a communication shortly to the district education officer to remain alert and instruct all schools to ensure that the vehicles they are hiring for any purpose have valid permit and fitness certificates and follow the necessary safety guidelines," said regional transport officer Dipti Ranjan Patra.
Patra further said that under the new policy on transport of schoolchildren, installation of global positioning system and speed governors have already been made mandatory for the buses that take kids to schools every day. #
Earlier, a technical team of the Regional Transport Authority had also found several violations and irregularities in the operation of 288 buses hired by 29 school and college authorities in the district.
The vehicles of such educational institutions lacked various safety parameters.
"We will shortly start issuing showcause notices to the schools for not complying with safety parameters. The fitness certificate of the vehicles will also be cancelled," said motor vehicles inspector Rashmiranjan Dalbehera.
