What you need to know?
- Child safety on school buses is important and drivers need to ensure accidents don't happen.
This is with reference to the repeated tragic incidents of children losing their lives because they were ‘forgotten’ in school buses in this summer heat (“Six year old dies after being forgotten on Dubai bus”, Gulf News, June 16).
I shudder to think of the situation of those hapless parents who have lost their children because they slept off at the back of their school bus, and had no one was there to wake them up. It is absolutely necessary that the school authorities and the bus drivers are made responsible for such gross neglect. I am glad that the concerned authorities are taking every possible effort in this regard. The introduction of an electronic punch-in and punch-out system is also another method to tackle the issue.
While the accidents are unfortunate, I think the blame lies not only from the side of the school bus driver or conductor, but also the children themselves. Children are either not aware of the seriousness of the issue, or did not care to help.
I think, the introduction of the buddy-system will help tackle this issue. The children themselves must be made responsible for each other’s safety. Also, if any child finds another child sleeping on the bus once they reach school, they should either wake them up or inform the driver. This will not only save lives but will also teach our children the value of cooperation.
Once the children are trained and are made aware of the situation, and how it can be fatal, they will take the initiative to ensure that it does not happen again.
Just as we train children on fire safety, nutrition, and recycling, let’s teach our children to care for each other and be responsible for one and other. This way, we not only avoid the tragedy, but we also raise our children to be responsible and caring individuals.
- The reader is a resident of Abu Dhabi.
