Give directions to mention school name while challaning vehicles, DGP urged

City-based RTI activist Ajay Sharma wrote a letter to the DGP, Punjab, urging him to give directions to all officials of the traffic police across the state to maintain proper record of challaned vehicles and offences by duly mentioning proper details of the offenders (including the name, mobile number and address of the offenders) as well as the name of the school for which the bus or van is transporting students.

Sharma mentioned in the letter that earlier he had moved an application before the Child Rights Commission, Punjab, Mohali, regarding the plying of school buses with fake registration number plates across cities of Ludhiana and Amritsar.

Upon the aforesaid complaint, a case was registered last year at Ludhiana against 23 unidentified persons. However ,the Secretary, RTA, Amritsar, and the traffic police, Amritsar, had not taken any action. The 23 unidentified persons were originally challaned by the traffic police, Ludhiana, under various offences while they were plying school buses for many known and reputed schools of Ludhiana. However, while issuance of challans, the name and address credentials, pertaining to traffic offenders as well as the names of schools, which basically own/operate/outsource operations of such vehicles, were not mentioned in the challan book.

The RTI activist further stated that he had also obtained the records of Patiala and Tarn Taran districts through the RTI regarding similar frauds where fake vehicle registration number and fake number plates are being used by school buses to ply on roads, thereby committing fraud with the state as well as putting a question mark over the safety, life and liberty of schoolchildren.