After Indore DPS bus mishap, school buses' fitness check in Raipur soon

RAIPUR: The horrific Indore school bus accident which claimed five lives has pushed the Raipur traffic police and RTO to conduct checks on buses plying in the city.

All educational institutions have been instructed to send their buses for 'mechanical and technical check-up' to Rawabhata ground on January 13 and 14.

Cops said bus drivers and conductors from all school, colleges and educational institutions have to come to the ground with their vehicles and the proper set of documents including their licences and vehicle registrations. Documents like previous fitness text, tax, insurance, pollution check certificate among others will also be checked, said police.

There will be a health and eye check-up of the drivers and conductors as a part of a free health camp, said police. The principals of educational institutions have been informed about the drive.

They have been asked to send their buses between 9am to 4pm on the scheduled date. Action will be taken against those institutes that fail to do so.

The grisly bus crash has also triggered panic among parents many of whom came forward to complain that the school buses are not following proper safety measures. They raised concern over the speeding school buses which are a common site on the roads. In addition, there were parents who said that there is usually no additional staff on the buses to look after the safety of students.

A parent, Neha Shukla who lives in Shankar Nagar said school buses can be seen driving rashly almost every day, navigating through the traffic blaring horns, which is a cause of concern.

Officers said that the as instructed to schools, there are contact numbers mentioned on the back of buses, in case of rash driving, people should not hesitate in alerting the school about the incident.

The parents have demanded to ensure presence of teaching staff on bus till the last child is dropped to his home and to mention numbers of drivers and conductors on the back of the bus. The education department will take cognizance of it and take up the matter with the school authorities.