At this run, kids had to put in a marathon effort
The children had to dodge traffic, which brushed by them, during their run from Chikka Kodigehalli Main Road to KLE Law College on Sunday; the school bus-turned-ambulance
By Y Maheswara Reddy
Traffic on 3-km stretch and lack of water or medical facilities put students in danger
The idea was to organise a physically engaging healthy activity for kids. However, themarathon organised by Podar International School on Sunday for more than 250 students, ended up becoming a marathon session for the kids.
The school claims everything was in place, but there were some safety lapses thatBangalore Mirror saw during the marathon held from Chikka Kodigehalli Main Road to KLE Law College between 6.45 am and 9 am.
For one, there were no policemen to regulate the vehicular movement on the 3-km stretch, thus exposing the students to traffic and its haphazard ways. In the absence of traffic policemen, we even saw a few potentially threatening situations during the marathon
However, Tavarakere Police Sub Inspector has said that he had deputed two police constables at the venue, but the parents asked how police constables could regulate speeding vehicles on the three-km stretch. “A girl student was almost hit by a speeding cab, which was trying to overtake a mini truck,’’ says a parent, who had accompanied his daughter to the marathon.
The other glaring miss was that organisers had not arranged supply of drinking water for the participants on the entire stretch.
“A few students were seen left exhausted during the marathon. There was no drinking water for the participants,” said another parent.
Another parent said the road was not suitable for a marathon. “I hope other schools, who want to organize similar events, will keep this in mind,’’ she said. As for medical facilities, the school had just converted a school bus into an ambulance. The ‘ambulance’ vehicle neither had a doctor nor medical staffers.
'Event was incident-free'
Gayathri V Irny, Principal of Podar International School told BM that no untoward incident took place during the marathon. “I did not see the policemen myself, but my employees told me that four policemen were deputed to regulate vehicular movement on the stretch,’’ Irny said.
Students from Chitrakoot School, Amrita Vidyalayam School and other nearby schools took part in the run.
“The purpose of the marathon was to ensure good health for the students. We had organised two marathons — 2 km for under-12 (150 students) and 3 km for under-14 (110 students). We arranged snacks for the participants and also felicitated the winners with cash prizes. We gave cash prizes to more than 20 students,’’ the principal said.
Traffic on 3-km stretch and lack of water or medical facilities put students in danger
The idea was to organise a physically engaging healthy activity for kids. However, the
The school claims everything was in place, but there were some safety lapses that
Children ran on the main road early in the morning . Photo by Anantha Subramanyam K/MMCL
For one, there were no policemen to regulate the vehicular movement on the 3-km stretch, thus exposing the students to traffic and its haphazard ways. In the absence of traffic policemen, we even saw a few potentially threatening situations during the marathon
The traffic wasn't diverted for the event. Photo by Anantha Subramanyam K/MMCL
However, Tavarakere Police Sub Inspector has said that he had deputed two police constables at the venue, but the parents asked how police constables could regulate speeding vehicles on the three-km stretch. “A girl student was almost hit by a speeding cab, which was trying to overtake a mini truck,’’ says a parent, who had accompanied his daughter to the marathon.
The other glaring miss was that organisers had not arranged supply of drinking water for the participants on the entire stretch.
A few students were seen left exhausted during the marathon. There was no drinking water for the participants
“A few students were seen left exhausted during the marathon. There was no drinking water for the participants,” said another parent.
No drinking water was available for the exhausted participants. Photo by Anantha Subramanyam K/MMCL
Another parent said the road was not suitable for a marathon. “I hope other schools, who want to organize similar events, will keep this in mind,’’ she said. As for medical facilities, the school had just converted a school bus into an ambulance. The ‘ambulance’ vehicle neither had a doctor nor medical staffers.
'Event was incident-free'
Gayathri V Irny, Principal of Podar International School told BM that no untoward incident took place during the marathon. “I did not see the policemen myself, but my employees told me that four policemen were deputed to regulate vehicular movement on the stretch,’’ Irny said.
Students from Chitrakoot School, Amrita Vidyalayam School and other nearby schools took part in the run.
“The purpose of the marathon was to ensure good health for the students. We had organised two marathons — 2 km for under-12 (150 students) and 3 km for under-14 (110 students). We arranged snacks for the participants and also felicitated the winners with cash prizes. We gave cash prizes to more than 20 students,’’ the principal said.
