Principal’s appeal awakens government to kids’ road safety

GURUGRAM: The administration has planned footpaths, zebra crossings, sign boards and lane marking in front of the

government

boys’ senior secondary

school

in

Civil Lines

to ensure safety of students.


In February, the school principal had written to the additional deputy commissioner (ADC), saying that the administration should take steps to ensure students can safely cross the busy roads in front of the school.

The matter was taken up by the ADC and it has been decided that a private company will create a safe zone around the school, keeping the interests of students in mind. Principal Geeta Arya said, “We need safe road crossing facilities for our schoolchildren. They are at high risk of accidents while crossing the Civil Lines road, which sees a high volume of

traffic

. Students might get injured due to the lack of zebra crossings or at the multiple cuts for crossing roads — this is a serious concern. I had urged the authorities to provide zebra crossings for students to cross the road and install speed bumpers to reduce the speed of vehicles on this stretch.”

The ADC said, “As part of our goal to develop safe zones around vulnerable schools, Trax will work in the area around the government boys senior secondary school in Civil Lines. Footpaths will be made 40 feet right and left of the school and lined with railings. Sign boards saying ‘school ahead’, ‘no honking’, ‘speed limit’ and ‘school zone’ will be installed. Besides, proper zebra crossings will be provided at the medians.”

These measures, according to the administration, will play a big role in reducing accidents in the school zone. MCG, the maintenance agency of the area, said that it would do its best to remove hawkers from the vicinity of the school. MCG mayor Madhu Azad said, “I have told officials to remove all hawkers from the road so that students can cross the road safely.”

In February, a team led by the Gurugram traffic police had found many discrepancies in the area, which made it unsafe for students. “The team found that there was no provision for pedestrians to cross to the other side of the road at Civil Lines. Secondly, there were many unsafe openings at the medians and pedestrians were risking their lives to cross the road using the same. Lastly, the entire road has been encroached upon by hawkers,” said Anurag Kulshrestha, the president of Trax.

In the audit, the school got a star rating of 2 out of 5 with regards to safety of students. “The school is in a high-risk zone where accidents can occur any time. We have recommended speed bumpers 20m before the pedestrian crossing,” said Kulshrestha. At present, the Trax team is waiting for a nod from the administration before starting the work.