Private school buses to be off roads today

Parents dependent on private vehicles to send their wards to schools need to make alternate arrangements on Wednesday as private vehicles (not school-owned one) will not be operational.

The Karnataka United School and Light Motor Vehicles Drivers' Union has organised a school vehicle drivers' convention on Wednesday in Bengaluru seeking fulfilment of their long-pending demands. Following this, no private vehicle attached to private schools in the city will ply on the day.

"We have informed the parents in advance to make alternate arrangements for one day," the union said.

G Hanumesh, deputy secretary of All India Trade Union Congress, said: "80% of the school buses are private ones and only 20% of them have their own vehicles for transportation. When we look at the tax and permit issues, the private players are undergoing lots of harassment."

Over 600 members are expected to take part in the convention and rest would stop operations in support of the convention.

Their major demands are, permit even for private vehicles playing for schools, equal tax for both school-owned and private vehicles, parking facility for private school vehicles near schools, withdraw amendments brought to Indian Motor Vehicle Act, welfare board for unrecognised drivers.

Parents' responsibility

However, authorities of schools say that they have nothing to do with this. D Shashi Kumar, general secretary of primary and secondary schools in Karnataka, said: "Sending kids to schools with private vehicles is an understanding between parents and vehicles operators. We, schools, have nothing to do with that. It's the responsibility of parents to make alternate arrangements."