Panel for bus norms takes tips from states

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The state government appointed six-member committee to devise new set of regulations for educational institution vehicles in the wake of Tambaram incident is going through the rulebooks of all southern states including Andhra Pradesh.

The Madras high court has directed the state government to frame regulations for governing educational institution vehicles and submit before it within two weeks.

“The committee has been busy studying the rule books of other states which, they considered, have effective control over operation of educational institute vehicles.

They keep coming up with new suggestions after going through carefully the rules being implemented in neighbouring states.

The clippings of the stories on ‘new norms for educational institutional vehicles’ appeared in news papers printed in other states are found spread across the tables of the officials,” sources in the transport department told DC on Tuesday.

The committee will collect the set of rules lacking in our state and will include the indispensable norms so as to have effectual control over educational institutional vehicles.

“The new rules will tighten screws against violators including the private van operators which would bind them to register their names with the schools concerned besides intimating about their operations to the government authorities,” a senior official said.

In the related development, state transport officials, have inspected as much as 17,500 educational institutional vehicles and suspended fitness certificates of 449 vehicles.

cops slap fines on overloaded vehicles in city

A sum of Rs 2,600 has been slapped as fine on overloaded vehicles even while auto drivers complain they are unnecessarily targeted.

While the police and transport authorities have initiated action against auto rickshaws the illegally operated share autos ply scot free, auto drivers point out.

“Though the transport department has clearly stipulated that auto rickshaws could carry a maximum of five students, a few police personnel slap fine on us even if we carry students as per the prescribed limits.

Further, they confiscated the autos causing hardships to students, who depend only on our vehicles, as well,” laments an auto driver whose vehicle was confiscated by police last week.