Make cameras, attendants mandatory on school buses, say local activists

The recent death of a schoolgirl has put the safety of students in and outside school premises to question. Many activists and educationists have urged the government to take stern action against the callousness of school authorities.

Col Jasjit Singh Gill, former member of the state task force on the Buddha Darya Rejuvenation Project, has written a letter to the Chief Minister, Education Minister, Chief Secretary, and Deputy Commissioner, urging them to pass necessary instructions to the schools to adoptsafety measures.

In the letter, Col Gill urged the government to instruct schools to make front, side, and rear cameras compulsory for school buses. “If cameras are installed on all sides, it would be convenient for the drivers to keep an eye on the kids, and such accidents can be avoided,” said Col Gill.

Activists said that according to the rule, attendants shall be present in buses, especially in the ones ferrying younger students. But most schools flout these norms with impunity in the absence of checks by law enforcement agencies. “Had there been an attendant, the girl could have been saved,” said Col Gill.

Avinash Kaur Walia from Springdale School here also feels that attendants are a must in school buses. She added that the school has about 15 buses and there were attendants in all the big buses. “We have employed male and female attendants in the buses for the safety of the students. This was an unfortunate incident, but no school puts the life of any student in danger,” said Walia.