Mumbai schools demand women bus drivers

At a time when the safety and security of students are at stake, more and more schools in Mumbai are demanding women employees on board, especially bus drivers

Representational picture

At a time when the safety and security of students are at stake, more and more schools are demanding women employees on board, especially bus drivers. Based on a survey conducted a couple of months back, the Western Indian Automobile Association is trying to convince the state government to make changes in its policy, so that women can be appointed as bus drivers.

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"Based on the survey results, we have asked the state and Central governments to change the minimum requirement of five years of experience for getting appointed as a school bus driver. The response was positive," said Nitin Dossa, executive chairman of Western India Automobile Association.

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He further said, "We train women for driving private vehicles, but now, they will also be taught how to drive buses. We will give them training in self-defence and spoken English as well. By the end of this year, about five women drivers can demonstrate their skills at different schools for the job."

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Speaking to mid-day, Deepshikha Srivastava, principal, Rajhans Vidyalaya, Andheri West, said, "It is always safer to have women employees in school. If schools start appointing women drivers, then it'll be a big relief in terms of child safety."

Meanwhile, Anil Garg, president of School Bus Owners' Association, said, "We have received a number of calls from schools demanding women bus drivers. In fact, three years back we had trained 22 women for the job, but it was of no use as the state transport policy has no provision for it."

RTO rule
According to the School Bus Owners' Association, Mumbai schools do not have women bus drivers, as an RTO rule says that such drivers need to have a minimum of five years of experience of driving heavy vehicles.

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