Schools told to gather feedback from students on bus operators

To ensure the safety of schoolchildren, Deputy Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya has instructed all private schools in the district to periodically gather feedback from students and their parents regarding the conduct of bus drivers, conductors and attendants.

A record of the feedback must be maintained by each school as part of the Surakshit School Vahan Policy.

Dahiya recently chaired a meeting aimed at discussing the effective implementation of the policy, where school staff, including drivers and conductors, were present.

During the meeting, participants were briefed on various provisions of the policy, emphasising the importance of safety measures to ensure the wellbeing of schoolchildren.

“Road safety is a critical issue, and any negligence can endanger the safety of children. Therefore, all school heads and traffic in-charges must ensure that school vehicles comply with safety standards as outlined in the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). Strict adherence to the policy is essential to safeguard the lives of children,” the DC said.

The DC added that the district administration was taking road safety very seriously.

He said meetings and workshops in this regard would be organised at regular intervals to ensure the safe travel of children in school vehicles.

Dahiya asked school managers and traffic in-charges to not only familiarise themselves with the policy but also to educate others on its importance.

Road safety officials Keshika, Navdeep and Girish explained various aspects of the policy through detailed presentations.

The presentations covered a wide range of important topics, including the significance of safe driving, fitness of school vehicles, police verification of drivers, and technical requirements such as speed governors and GPS systems.

The officials said certain safety measures must be mandatory in all school vehicles, including the installation of fire extinguishers, CCTV cameras and a record of emergency contact numbers.

They emphasised that students must be cautious when boarding or deboarding buses, and must always follow road safety rules.

An interactive session followed, where attendees had the opportunity to ask questions and present concerns regarding the implementation of the policy.

DCP Deepak Saharan, ADC Saloni Sharma, SDMs Ravinder Yadav, Naseeb Kumar, Satish Yadav and Ravinder Malik also addressed the gathering during the meeting.