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Longowal van tragedy: School closed, 200 parents seek answers
PICKING UP PIECES Admn says it will give admission to students in the village school; the school’s affiliation with the state board is likely to be cancelled
Longowal (Sangrur) Two days after four students, a boy and three girls, in the age group of 3-6 years were burnt alive when a ramshackle mini-van of Simran Public School, Longowal, caught fire in the village, the school remained closed on Monday.
Hard, difficult questions about the future stare at parents of 200 students. Their concern stems from the fact that the government, in all probability, will cancel the school’s affiliation with the Punjab School Education Board.
This will mean they will have to find another school for their wards, where they would again have to pay the admission fee and other expenses already paid to this school; pertinent to this issue is the fact that only final exams are to be conducted with the academic session set to close in another month or so. Any refund from Simran Public School is unlikely as the owner-cum-principal Lakhwinder Singh is in police lock-up, having been sent to three-day police custody on Sunday.
“The school is closed and we are expecting that the government will guide us. We have no idea on where we should enrol her now,” said Gurjeet Kaur, mother of Amandeep Kaur, 14, who saved four students from the fire due to her presence of mind.
Gurpreet Kaur, two of whose kids sustained minor injuries but were rescued, demanded that the government should ensure education and safety of children during schools hours and during transport.
“We paid ₹11,000 fee for my son, Manvir Singh. Now, we have to shift our children to another school and pay fee again,” Kaur added.
Lakhvir Singh, another parent, said his daughter and nephew were in nursery and Class-1 in the school and the family had to pay ₹5,000 and ₹7,000 annual fee, respectively, exclusive of transport and other charges, respectively.
“Government Primary School, Sunami Patti, which was functional near our residence was shifted, forcing us to enrol children in this school,” Lakhvir added.
Deputy commissioner Ghanshyam Thori said, “Further action against the school will be taken after magisterial probe report is submitted. Students will be admitted to government schools. If parents want to shift to private schools, it will be their choice.”
CM ANNOUNCES BRAVERY AWARD, FREE EDUCATION FOR AMANDEEP
The Punjab government will honour Class-9 student Amandeep Kaur for showing exemplary courage by saving four children in the Longowal schoolvan tragedy by giving her a bravery award, chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh announced on Monday. He added the award would be conferred on the Independence Day and the government will sponsor her education. The girl, accompanied by father Satnam Singh and Congress leader Daman Thind Bajwa also met Amarinder on Monday evening. The CM also consoled Kuldeep Singh Bajwa, a member of the family that lost children in the tragedy.
4,500 SCHOOL VEHICLES CHECKED; 1,650 CHALLANED, 250 IMPOUNDED
The state transport department on Monday checked 4,504 school vehicles, of which 1,649 were challaned and 253 impounded for not complying with the requisite parameters of motor vehicle act. A spokesperson said the drive would continue.
A vehicle being used for school transport needs to be painted yellow; ’school bus’ should be prominently displayed on the front and the rear of the vehicle; the name of the school and its telephone number should be displayed.
Other requirements are a first-aid box, fire extinguisher, emergency door and the driver must possess heavy driving licence and five years of driving experience. The vehicle must not be older than 15 years and must have CCTVs and female attendants as well. Uniform is also must for driver and staff .
In a sign that even two days after the horrific incident, rules for carrying schoolchildren were being flouted, 17 of 35 vehicles that authorities checked were impounded. Five buses were challaned. In Barnala, over 80 buses and vans were checked and challans were issued to 20 buses; 6 were impounded.
The administration took action (either fined or impounded) 133 vehicles involved in the ferrying of schoolchildren. The figure to date was 197. In Rupnagar, 30 vehicles were impounded.
The administration challaned 73 schoolvans in Muktsar in Monday, with five being seized; 11 challans were issued in Malout and 21 in Gidderbaha; 41 challans were issued in Muktsar.
In Gurdaspur, 210 buses were challaned and six were impounded. In Nabha, 37 challans were issued. Ludhiana saw 306 challans and 36 such vehicles being impounded. In Mohali, 50 vehicles were challaned and 18 impounded.
In the district, 48 vehicles were challaned and nine impounded. As per information that the transport department and district child protection office provided, of 750 private schools, 250 officer transport facility but only 10-odd schools comply with guidelines. “Only a few private schools are complying with safe school vahan scheme,” said district child protection officer Ajay Bharti.
Expressing deep shock over the loss of lives of four innocent children who were charred to death in an old and ramshackle schoolvan in Sangrur district, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) leader of opposition (LoP) in Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Harpal Singh Cheema has sought the dismissal of state education minister Vijay Inder Singla. He also demanded the setting up of a regulatory body to ensure safety of schoolchildren during transport.
