Hoshiarpur: Acting on the directives of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the Punjab State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, and the Deputy Commissioner of Hoshiarpur, a special inspection drive for school buses was conducted in the district on July 16 and 17 under the 'Safe School Vehicle Policy'.
During the drive, buses belonging to Oxford International School (Attowal), Bliss Public School, Navyug Model School (Attowal), and Delhi International School (Chabbewal) were inspected. A total of 29 school buses were checked across the district; 10 of them were issued challans (fines) for violating regulations.
The inspections revealed several deficiencies, such as expired first-aid kits, the absence of female attendants, lack of valid fitness certification ('passing'), missing speed governors, absence of emergency exits, lack of fire extinguishers and CCTV cameras, overcrowding (passengers exceeding capacity), and the absence of valid insurance.
The drive was a joint effort involving the District Child Protection Unit (Hoshiarpur)—represented by District Child Protection Officer Dr. Harpreet Kaur, Social Worker Gurjot Singh, Supervisor Gurpreet Kaur, and Case Worker Jaswinder Singh—along with the Child Welfare Committee (Hoshiarpur)—represented by Chairperson Harjit Kaur and Member Jagdish Mittar—as well as Kuldeep Singh from the RTO office and officials and personnel from the Police Department.
An awareness campaign regarding the 'Safe School Vehicle Policy' was also conducted at various schools during this event. The District Child Protection Officer stated that school buses failing to adhere to the policy's prescribed standards pose a risk of accidents. Consequently, all school managements were instructed to ensure that every bus complies with the mandated safety standards.
The task force directed all schools to ensure periodic medical check-ups for bus drivers, mandate that drivers and attendants wear the prescribed uniforms, exercise special caution while helping young children board and alight, and immediately rectify all deficiencies identified during the inspection.