I woke up to my 5 o’clock
alarm. My husband was still working in his studio. I seized the opportunity to
have a cup of tea with my darling husband early in the morning; usually a rare
moment in my life! As my husband is not a tea lover. “O’ What a fresh morning,”
I thought to myself and giggled.
Soon we both got engaged
in our own activities. It was time for him to sleep after a hard work through
the night. I got busy getting my elder son ready for school.
Though my son has somehow adjusted
to the school transport yet there are few days every month when he nags me to let
him be a walker as his best friend.
Today was one such day!
But after a lovely start to my day I was not prepared to the emotional nagging
drama of my son. Yet there I was consoling him, hugging him, kissing him, and
trying to ease up things for him.
I was upset for a while.
We walked to the bus stop, silently. His eyes were still wet. But suddenly that
was not bothering me anymore, as there seemed to be a bigger problem.
The bus driver and the
lady guard were the same as every day. I could not understand who the 3rd
person in the bus was and why was he there? Where was the usual conductor of
the bus route!
I exchanged goodbyes and
flying kisses with my son as I watched the bus pass me through. I could sense
the discomfort in his eyes as there was a new person in the bus, who was not in
uniform, his hair was undone and he looked filthy. Also, the fact that there
was no teacher in the school bus but only a handful of kids was enough to
trigger my panic button.
More than my son now I was
scared. This brought to surface the last year’s incident of a 4 year old child
molested in the same school’s bus, by similar negligence on part of the school
authorities.
Now, it was not just the
question of my son’s safety but my moral duty to stand up to voice the
carelessness on part of the school transport management.
I quickly wrote an email
hoping an immediate action. It was to no use as I did not hear from the school.
My next step was to go to
school and confront the transport manager about the whole episode. Minutes
later I was in the school reporting the issue. I was surprised and taken aback
when I heard the casual statement by the transport manager himself that he knew
there was a new person in the bus who was neither a school staff, nor was he
verified and was only replaced as they had a shortage of staff for the day.
This meeting lasted only
for a few seconds with a slack reassurance.
Many parents must have
been through a similar situation concerning their child’s safety in school.
Henceforth, this article
is to bring in awareness to the parents and guardians of children availing
school transport. Kindly tighten your grip on the school authorities for the
safety of your child / children.
Considering the busy
schedules and tired lifestyle we have all come to terms with, I would request
all those reading this article to find a little quality time to spend with your
kids. To know more about their school, their friends, their likes, dislikes and
anything else that they might want to share. Be present for them undisturbed.
Understand their needs and assure them to reach you if at any point in life
they feel threatened or unsafe.
Our kids are our future
but we can only enjoy the future with them if we are a part of their present.
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