Condoms, expired medicines recovered from first-aid kits of school buses

Gurugram A packet of men’s condoms and expired antiseptic lotions and painkillers were found in the first aid kit of a school bus of a private school in Sector 56, during a routine inspection carried out by government authorities on Thursday, officials said on Friday

Gurugram A packet of men’s condoms and expired antiseptic lotions and painkillers were found in the first aid kit of a school bus of a private school in Sector 56, during a routine inspection carried out by government authorities on Thursday, officials said on Friday.

Condoms, expired medicines recovered from first-aid kits of school buses

The inspection team, led by Badshahpur subdivisional magistrate Satish Yadav, reached the school in Sector 56 to inspect the safety features of its buses when the discoveries were made.

Jitender Kumar, Sohna subdivisional magistrate, who was part of the team, found that 27 students were crammed into a bus meant only for eight. He also found that the school was operating without any recognition.

Officials said the condoms were found in one of the 11 buses of the school, while the expired medicines, which included an antiseptic lotion that expired in February 2021, were found in another one. “Another medicine was a strip of painkiller tablets that had an expiry date of 2020 printed on it,” said an official.

A third bus did not have safety grills on its windows, said officials.

“A loose spare wheel and a heavy metal wrench were found in the seating area of students, which is a safety hazard,” a senior government official said.

They said the buses didn’t even have proper colour coding as required. Officials said the expired medicines and was yet not replaced yet even after more than one and a half years.

Yadav said they had written a letter to the school administration on the issue. “Their reply is awaited,” he said.

Gurugram deputy commissioner (DC) Nishant Kumar Yadav, who was apprised about the discoveries of the inspection team in a meeting on road safety on Friday, said, “The recovery of the male contraceptives from a school bus will amount to criminal action. I will get the matter inquired into.”

The DC said transport vehicles of 20 private schools were inspected between December 1 and December 22 and authorities found that safety rules were being violated in seven schools. “I have directed notices to be issued to the institutions in which safety norms were being violated. If they are first time offenders, then a warning will be issued. If they are second time offenders, registration certificates of the buses lacking safety features will be cancelled,” he said.

He also directed officials to seal the premises of the school where 27 students were forced into an 8-seather bus, and register a First Information Report against the school administration.