THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ahead of school reopening, the motor vehicles department (MVD) has granted fitness certificates to 27,000 school buses across the state, leaving approximately 2,000 vehicles still awaiting safety clearances.
Despite immense pressure to certify the maximum number of vehicles before the start of the academic year, the department prioritised student safety by strictly denying certification to buses failing to comply with mandatory safety protocols.
The lag in securing these approvals has even prompted a few private schools to defer their reopening dates, as MVD authorities firmly maintained that no compromises will be made regarding vehicle compliance.
A significant number of buses failed the rigorous state-wide checks due to missing blind-spot mirrors, camera and recording deficiencies, broken panic buttons, faulty speed governors, and non-functional GPS units linked to the MVD’s Suraksha Mitra tracking software.
Addressing the situation, Transport Commissioner C Nagaraju emphasized that while fitness checking is being conducted en masse and as expeditiously as possible for the school reopening, any delays in carrying out necessary repairs ultimately rest in the hands of the respective educational institutions.
Offering the perspective of school administrators, Thottakkadu Sasi, a representative of the private school management association, noted that the MVD has streamlined the massive inspection process quite well.