The journey to and from school cannot be more perilous. A four-year-old boy named Mohammed Faizal Noorullah died recently in Chikkajala, after he fell off his school minibus while it was reversing. 
This accident has raised questions regarding safety on school buses — whether schools' management are doing enough to ensure that children are transported safely; whether the traffic police is clamping down on offenders who overload their vehicles or leave them unmanned.
Metrolife interacted with some of the schools' management, the BMTC and parents to understand how the issue of safety is tackled.
Schools' management claim they've taken measures to ensure that children travel safely. Special identity cards are issued to the drivers and their personal details are collected at the time of appointment.
School authorities say that they buy buses that are designed to transport only a limited number of children. A few schools issue bus passes to make sure that the bus is not overcrowded.
Sophia High School has tied up with the BMTC and has 11 buses going to different parts of the City. Each child is issued a bus pass of Rs 750 or more, depending on the distance and location.
The capacity of each bus does not exceed 60. Celine D'Souza, with the administrative department of Sophia, says, "The buses start from a designated point at 7 am and drop the child back to a designated point before 4 pm. If there is any delay, we contact the bus depot which in turn inform the drivers."
CMR National Public School has 30-odd buses with seating capacities of 16, 35 and 50. Sabitha Ramamurthy, the principal of the school, informs that the drivers are recruited only after a background check and their original licences are kept with the management. "The drivers and conductors are paid well and the transport department of the school keeps a regular check on them. They take feedback from parents to make sure there are no complaints. We also pull up the drivers if they falter and warn them," says Sabitha.
The BMTC has been providing 350 buses to 80 schools in the City. K R Srinivasa, managing director of the BMTC, says, "All the conductors and drivers are recruited only if they adhere to the eligibility. Buses that are sent to schools follow a prescribed route and conductors don't issue any tickets. They only ensure that the child is picked up and dropped safely. All these buses also have automated doors that open only when the bus stops and shuts as soon as it starts moving," he informs.
The Bangalore Traffic Police has begun checking all schools buses for attendants and ensuring they don't exceed the prescribed speed limit. Additional commissioner of police (traffic and safety), M A Saleem, says, "After this incident, all the policemen deputed around schools check if there are attendants in every school bus and if they are found without one, we recommend to the RTO that their permits be cancelled."
Parents always have their reservations when it comes to school vans and safety.
Most working parents have no choice but to send their child by the school's transport but wish the school management would be accountable for the safety of children.
Archana A P, a software engineer, has a son going to LKG. "The school van always has an attendant. But we worry about the large seats for small kids, with no proper grip. I feel seatbelts should be compulsory. Use of technology, like
GPS will certainly help," she reasons.