The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently barred educational institutions in the state from employing drivers fined for speeding, drunken driving or dangerous driving [Parmod Kumar vs Govt of India and Others]..The Division Bench of Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Binod Kumar Dwivedi passed the direction as part of a slew of guidelines issued by it for the safety of children traveling in the buses belonging to educational institutions, coaching centers, sports academies and local bodies.The school buses shall be operated by drivers with permanent driving licenses and a minimum of five years of experience in driving heavy vehicles, the Court ordered.“Such drivers will not be employed who have been challaned (fined) on more than two occasions in one year for offences like violating the lane system violating signal lights or allowing an authorized person to enter. A driver who has been challaned even once for the offence of over speeding, drunken driving and dangerous driving shall not be employed. An affidavit to this effect shall be obtained by the educational institution from the driver of the vehicle,” the order reads..The Court passed the guidelines while disposing of a batch of petitions filed after an accident involving a bus of Delhi Public School, Nipania, Indore in 2018. Four students and the driver had died in the accident, prompting many parents to move the High Court for safety measures.The Bench noted that while the State in 2017 came up with a law to regulate fee structure and other related issues in respect of the private schools, there was no provision related to management of school buses.On the other hand, the Court found Chhattisgarh government to have amended Chhattisgarh Motor Vehicle Rules, 1994 to put conditions in the school bus permits.“However, in the State of Madhya Pradesh, no steps have been taken so far to amend local law i.e. the M.P. Motor Vehicles Rules, 1994,” it said..Accordingly, the Bench said that till the MP government makes provisions for registration, permit and special conditions for school buses as done by Chhattisgarh, the Court would issue similar conditions as guidelines under Article 226 of the Constitution.The conditions have been ordered to be attached to every school bus permit and every vehicle taken on hire by educational institutions for use as a school bus. Besides issuing similar conditions as applicable in Chhattisgarh, the Court also issued additional directions.“Every ''School Bus'' or ''On School Duty'' shall have a GPS tracking system and a CCTV camera so that the vehicle can be tracked and viewed by the parents through the mobile app,” the Court ordered further..The schools have also been directed to appoint vehicle incharges to monitor the safety norms and route of buses. In addition, one teacher will also have to travel with the students in the bus. “Every school management shall depute a male/female teacher, as the case may be, who shall travel along with the students in the bus from the first till the last stoppage of the route,” the order said..[Read Judgment]
