2 nursery students from Ambernath school fall from packed school van
Two nursery students fell from an overcrowded school van in Ambernath, injuring one. Parents demand accountability as police investigate negligence.
THANE: Two nursery students fell out of a moving school van on the Kalyan-Badlapur road in Ambernath on Monday afternoon. Police said the lock on the van’s back door was not secure and it was also crowded. The van driver and two caretakers inside the bus allegedly did not notice the children fall and drove off.
The van belonged to a private English-medium school in Ambernath West. According to the police, the van was also carrying more children than it could safely accommodate. The accident occurred at 1.30 pm. A rickshaw driver on his way to refill gas was driving behind the van at the time. As soon as the children fell, he stopped his vehicle. He picked up the children, who were crying by then. Sharad Patil, a shopkeeper and an eye witness, said, “The rickshaw driver stopped and helped the children, while the van driver continued driving up to the signal—neither he nor the caretaker realized what had happened. We all stopped him and were so angry that we almost hit him, but instead, we decided to hand him over to the police.”
One child suffered serious injuries, while the other escaped with minor wounds. Both are currently undergoing treatment at a hospital. Parents are furious and demanding accountability from the driver and the school. “We have been demanding a safer school van for a long time. This same van comes every day to pick up the children. Now, after the incident, the driver is lying to the police, claiming it was his first day using this vehicle while the regular one is at the garage. It’s a clear lie. Will it take a child’s death for the authorities to act? We send our kids to school for education, not to risk their lives in unsafe vehicles,” said Hafis Shaikh, a parent of another child who uses the van facility.
{{/usCountry}}One child suffered serious injuries, while the other escaped with minor wounds. Both are currently undergoing treatment at a hospital. Parents are furious and demanding accountability from the driver and the school. “We have been demanding a safer school van for a long time. This same van comes every day to pick up the children. Now, after the incident, the driver is lying to the police, claiming it was his first day using this vehicle while the regular one is at the garage. It’s a clear lie. Will it take a child’s death for the authorities to act? We send our kids to school for education, not to risk their lives in unsafe vehicles,” said Hafis Shaikh, a parent of another child who uses the van facility.
{{/usCountry}}The Ambernath police booked the van driver, Solomon Sakappa, and two female caretakers for negligence and endangering the lives of children. A police officer stated that if further investigation reveals lapses by the school administration, they will take appropriate legal action against them as well.
“This was a clear case of gross negligence,” said Senior Inspector Kishore Shinde from Ambernath police station. “If the school administration is found to have failed in their duty of care, they too will face action. We have also informed the RTO, as the van was operating illegally and lacked proper safety standards.”
Just a few days ago, another similar incident occurred on the same highway when a school van, trying to evade RTO inspection, met with an accident, injuring several students. These repeated incidents have raised serious concerns about the enforcement of student transport safety regulations.
