Students bear the brunt

Tribune News Service

JAMMU, October 16

Long hours of waiting have now become a routine affair for parents after the establishment of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) toll plaza at Sarore in Samba district.

Students of the schools situated near the toll plaza, especially at Patli Morh, Tarore, Jakh, 17 Miles, Vijyapur etc are bearing the brunt as the school transport ferrying children have to wait for hours and sometimes even more than that to reach their homes.

The aggrieved parents have expressed their concern over the issue and safety of their wards. “My son studying in a private school at Tarore usually comes home at 2:15 pm, however, after the toll plaza becomes functional, there will be no fixed time of him coming home. Some days the bus gets delayed by 30 minutes and some days by one hour. In fact, on the inaugural day of the toll plaza, his school bus reached around at 4 pm”, Vimal Sharma, a resident of Sarore, told The Tribune.

“We have taken up the matter with the school management. It makes us anxiety-prone to wait for our children for hours. At least, the toll plaza authorities should issue a special pass to the school buses so that the children can reach their homes on time”, said Sulekha, another parent. She said, “Majority of schools have opened up along the national highway and parents want their children to get the best education. However, with the coming up of the toll plaza we are in a fix not because we have to pay the toll but owing to the delayed arrival of school buses on a daily basis.”

School buses ferrying students of Mount Litera Zee School, Tarore; Shri Ram Universal School, Jakh; MV International School, 17 Miles, and many other schools located within 1-10 km distance have to wait for hours to drop the students.

“There is an alternate route available near the toll plaza but that route has now become busy as private Matadors are utilising it to avoid paying the toll”, said Suram, a private school bus driver.