The ghastly road accident in which a speeding tractor-trolley overturned on Gollapadu-Teerthala road here on Wednesday evening injuring 15 schoolchildren, drew an intense outcry from various students’ unions here.
It has brought back into spotlight the susceptibility of schoolchildren to road mishaps in the absence of proper public transport services to several State-run schools across the district.
As many as 15 students of the Zilla Parishad High School at Gollapadu suffered multiple injuries with four of them sustaining bleeding injuries in the gory mishap.
One of the severely injured students underwent surgery for removal of a clot that developed in a head injury owing to the accident. Her condition was stated to be stable.
Agitated over the gruesome road accident, students of the SFI and PDSU staged a demonstration outside the office of the regional manager of the TSRTC here on Thursday, demanding immediate introduction of bus service on Gollapadu-Teerthala route.
The protesters shouted slogans resenting the alleged indifference of the officials concerned in providing public transport services to the students of the ZPHS at Gollapadu as per the provisions of the Right to Education Act.
They pointed out that the discontinuation of a bus service, which was previously operated on the particular route covering a few tribal habitations, compelled the students belonging to Teerthala to travel in private vehicles between their school and the village.
Addressing the demonstrators, the SFI district president Ch Ramesh alleged that underprivileged students in several government schools were facing the risk of travelling in crammed private vehicles every day due to lack of the requisite public transport services to several villages in the district.
Operation of bus services to government schools should not be viewed from the economic feasibility standpoint, he contended, demanding that the government ensure public transport services to all the needy students of the State-run schools.
The leaders of the two students’ unions submitted a memorandum to the RTC authorities seeking reintroduction of a bus service between Gollapadu and Teerthala villages in Khammam rural mandal.
The officials concerned reportedly assured them that their plea for bus service will be conveyed to the higher authorities.