School bus committee to finally meet to discuss norms to be followed by vehicles
School bus committee to finally meet to discuss norms to be followed by vehicles
Even as schools in the city re-opened on June 15, confusion prevailed among parents, principals as well as autorickshaw men on whether the three-wheelers were still allowed to ferry schoolchildren. According to a recent state policy, a school vehicle must be a four-wheeler and should not have a canvas hood. But the policy does not specifically mention autorickshaws are not allowed, leading to confusion over their use as school transport. 
It's a crowd in there: Most autorickshaws that are used as school
transport have been found carrying more children than can be termed
safe. In many cases, even 10 to 12 children are packed into an auto.
File pic
To add to the confusion, a high-level committee which, according to the policy, is supposed to create norms at the district level is yet to convene a meeting.u00a0The policy mentions that the committee, to be headed by Police Commissioner Meeran Borwankar and with heads of other government bodies as members, should meet a month before schools begin. The meeting is now expected to happen today. The meeting will form three committeesu00a0-- one each for the city and rural areas, and one committee for every individual school. "These committees will oversee the implementation of the state government policy and ensure that school buses and other means of transport do not flout safety norms," said Arun Yeole, regional transport officer, Pune.
The meeting today also has an important decision to make, namely whether autorickshaws should be allowed to ferry school students and, if yes, the maximum seating capacity in an auto.u00a0MiD DAY in a survey on the first day of the academic year found rickshaws ferrying the students were doing it as dangerously as before. Each auto ferries 10-12 children, which might lead to serious consequences. Baba Shinde, member of the Regional Transport Authority, said, "The main issue is to stipulate the maximum seating capacity. Merely banning autorickshaws may not be a solution, because in that case alternative means of transport need to be worked out for children. What is important is safety, and that's why overcrowding by automen should be monitored."
Constitution of panels
The members notified by state government in its policy to formulate the three committees are:
1) Commissioner of Police
2) Pune Municipal Corporation's deputy commissioner
3) A general manager of the city transport unit
4) Deputy Regional Transport Officer.
Bus committee at school level
The committee is to be headed by the school principal, a representative from the Parent-Teacher Association, a policeman from the area, an RTO inspector, a civic body official and a representative of the vehicle owner.
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