A section of private schools did not operate their vehicles in protest against the transport department’s new norms, but several private schools preferred to ply their vehicles fearing government action.
The protest was called for by the Tamil Nadu nursery, primary, matriculation and higher secondary schools association whose secretary, KR. Nandakumar, claimed that several school buses, except those owned by private persons, stayed off the road.
“State has imposed 21 new regulations for school owned buses but not for the ones operated by private companies or persons. We have filed a case in the Madras HC and are waiting for the government’s counter. We will announce our next course of action after the verdict is pronounced”, he said.
Several schools in the city operated their vehicles as they did not want to invoke the state governemnt’s wrath. “Already we have plenty of issues with the government including fixation of fees so we don’t want to take on the government by protest. We would rather approach the government in a proper way as we know that the present chief minister will consider our demands and drop the new rules”, a correspondent of a private school in the city said.
Many school vehicles in the western districts remained parked in the Western districts of the state, including Coimbatore, Namakkal, Salem and Erode expressing solidarity for the protest.