At around 8 am on Thursday near Unhani village of Narnaul in Haryana, the bus of GL Public School overturned after hitting a tree due to high speed and negligence of the driver. Six people, including two children, were killed and 37 were injured in the accident. A total of 43 children were on the bus. As many as 14 children were admitted to the hospital with minor injuries. Two of them were referred to PGI Rohtak in a serious condition. A case was registered at Kanina police station and bus driver Dharmendra, school management committee secretary Hoshiar Singh and principal Deepti were arrested. Despite the holiday, the school was open. The driver was drunk.
Pradeep Kumar, assistant secretary of the Regional Transport Authority Mahendragarh, was suspended on the directions of Chief Minister Naib Saini. The case has been handed over to the Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic). The Deputy Commissioner has also recommended de-recognition of the school. The fitness test of the bus was not conducted for six years. Insurance and pollution certificates were also not renewed. The road tax was also not paid since 2018. Villagers had also tried to stop the bus after seeing the driver drinking alcohol. As soon as the bus hit the tree, the school children broke the glass panes of the bus and fell out. State Education Minister Seema Trikha said that a notice has been served to the operator for opening the school on the day of national holiday. The recognition of the school will be cancelled if the correct answer is not found.
The height of negligence
In a shocking incident, six children were killed after a school bus rammed into a tree in Haryana’s Mahendragarh. This accident is the culmination of negligence. Why were private schools open on Eid? This is not the first instance of a private school flouting rules. Such cases have occurred before. The school bus met with the accident in Mahendragarh as the driver was overtaking the bus at a high speed and was also drunk. In a way, he was bent on inviting the accident. It is natural for condolences to pour in after this horrific accident, but will anyone resolve that the causes that led to this accident will be remedied? This question is because school children have lost their lives in the past due to careless drivers or bad buses, but such a system could not be made so that the risk of their lives could be reduced. Can’t our policymakers, who dream of a better future for our children, at least ensure that there is no negligence in the operation of school buses? This question is with the politicians as well as the bureaucrats because it is their responsibility to follow the rules. Why do they never become partners in severe punishment?
The Haryana government has suspended the assistant secretary of the transport department and handed over the investigation of the accident to the additional transport commissioner and also announced that the fitness of school vehicles across the state will be checked. After all, it could have been worried earlier whether the maintenance and operation of school buses is being done properly or not? It cannot be satisfied that after the death of the children in the bus accident, instructions were given to take action against the school management. The question is, before this, why was there no one to see whether private schools remained closed on holidays or not? How the paperwork regarding the safe movement of school children is done, it is also known that about a year ago, on a public interest litigation, the Haryana government had given an affidavit in the High Court that it would take necessary steps in this regard. One can understand that the duty was fulfilled by assuring the High Court. This is not limited to a particular state. This is a nationwide problem and that is why road accidents occur every day in the country due to careless and inefficient drivers, bad vehicles, etc. No matter how many people die in these accidents, there is no effect on the health of our policymakers.
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