During a major drive to ensure safety of school children Monday morning, a joint team of mobile magistrates, RTO officials, and the traffic police found that a majority of school buses, vans, and auto-rickshaws did not meet mandatory safety norms for such vehicles across the city.
The surprise inspection of school vehicles began at 7am and continued for over two hours. During the drive, carried out under the direction of Rajasthan State Legal Services Authority (RALSA), vehicles were checked at several key locations in the city, including New Sanganer Road, Mansarovar, and Bani Park.
The inspection was led by District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) secretaries judge Deependra Mathur (DLSA-I) and judge Pallavi Sharma (DLSA-II). The team inspected vehicles on 21 safety parameters, but shockingly found that a majority of them failed to comply fully with the mandatory norms. Only one or two vehicles had a first-aid kit, and none of them had GPS tracking systems. Emergency exit provisions were also missing in most of the vehicles.
A large number of them were operating without support staff even though the rules mandate a helper to assist children while boarding and getting down from vehicles.
Many drivers were found without uniforms, driving licences, and vehicles didn’t have mandatory documents. Several vehicles lacked yellow identification stripes required for school transport. The team issued challans on the spot, especially outside Modern Public School in Mansarovar.
In Bani Park, a van belonging to Children’s Academy that had completed the 15-year service limit was seized. Another van of Maheshwari Public School taking children beyond its seating capacity was also seized.
A detailed inspection report will be submitted to RALSA, DLSA officials said. As per directives, district authorities must now inspect school vehicles at least three times a year and submit annual reports by April 0, Aug 10, and Dec 10. Monthly inspection reports must be sent by the 15th of every month. More such drives will be conducted in the coming months to reinforce child safety and ensure strict compliance with regulations, officials said.>
