Alarmed by a minor’s molestation in a school bus on Tuesday, citizens met on Sunday to discuss the state government’s guidelines for safety of children in schools and buses.
The bus cleaner, Ramesh Rajput, 35, touched the nursery student inappropriately as she was the last to be dropped home. He has been arrested on charges under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
The residents of the area and parents from the Juhu school attended the meeting. “We have told
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them about the guidelines as many are unaware about it. In most schools, the guidelines are not taken seriously,” said Ruben Mascarenhas, coordinator of Yuva Satta, Mumbai, an NGO working for governance and political reforms.
Ruben added that they have told parents to ask for these guidelines to be implemented in the school. “We will now circulate these guidelines to all like-minded NGOs for creating awareness in their respective areas,” said Ruben.
As per the guidelines, every school should have a transport committee to look into safety, transport and fire safety issues. It should be headed by the principal and one representative from the Parents Teachers’ Association, RTO official, education officer and local authority representatives as members. School principal expected to review the system twice a year.
“We have already launched ‘Zero Tolerance Campaign’ to ensure women’s safety. We are making a list of volunteers who will work with the police,” added Ruben.
