Safety of children is paramount
Road safety measures in Jammu and Kashmir have been facing several questions over the years. Though some changes have been brought but still lot needs to be done to make roads and commuting much safer.
Another important aspect related to road safety is the student safety norms as lakhs of students travel in school owned and private vans and buses while commuting to school daily.
Ironically, many a times we hear about various mishaps where the school vans and buses too face such situations and students face the brunt of such accidents.
Responding to such mishaps the Regional Transport Office (RTO) has launched a massive crackdown on private school vans ferrying children, with surprise inspections revealing alarming levels of overcrowding across multiple routes.
The drive carried out over the past few days; found that almost all vans checked were carrying far more students than the number permitted, raising serious concerns over safety and compliance.
Most of the vans that were checked were found to be overcrowded, lacking basic safety measures, and were operating in clear violation of transport norms.
The inspections were conducted at key spots near schools during peak morning and afternoon hours, catching many operators off guard. Several vans were found crammed with students beyond capacity, with some children seen sitting in unsafe positions, including near doors or on makeshift seats.
Surprisingly, vans and private bus owners who ferry students do not follow any norms and even the school management does not interfere with their operations. The van and bus operators directly engage with the parents and they do not give a damn to the safety measures that are necessary while ferrying kids to and fro from school.
Though, parents too have expressed concern, saying the issue has persisted for years but lacked enforcement. Many welcomed the crackdown, hoping it would lead to lasting changes in how student transport is regulated.
This issue has come up for the authorities as many parents had raised serious concerns over the safety of the children. Since there was no monitoring being done by authorities, the van and bus operators were escaping the law.
Now that the drive has been kick-started it should continue in the coming days, with intensified monitoring and zero tolerance for violations. The message should be clear and simple—safety first come what may. No compromise when it comes to the safety and well-being of the children.
Importantly, the crackdown signals a firm intent by authorities to bring discipline to an often-neglected sector, where convenience has too often come at the cost of safety.
The school authorities should also be warned and held accountable for outsourcing transportation without proper check and balances. .
