The police arrested three accused including school principal, driver and trust secretary in the Haryana school bus accident case that resulted in the death of six children.
According to reports, the bus driver was drunk and had jumped out of the vehicle right before it crashed into a tree. The principal and the secretary of the trust who ran the school and are currently under custody.
Authorities have reported that 14 of the students who were admitted to the hospital following the incident have been released, while three remain in critical condition.
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About 40 students from classes 4 to 10 belonging to GL Public School were on the school bus that collided with a tree and overturned near Unhani village of Kanina on Thursday.
The bus, which belonged to the school, was found to have had an expired fitness certificate since 2018, six years ago. As a result, a state road transport official has been suspended.
Following the registration of an FIR, Transport Minister Aseem Goel stated that the government has initiated an investigation into the incident.
Senior officials have been instructed to establish a committee to conduct a comprehensive probe encompassing all aspects.
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The committee will consist of senior state government officials, as mentioned by Goel to reporters.
He also highlighted that the bus involved in the accident had been recently fined for lacking certain documents, and the school authorities' negligence in continuing to use it despite this was evident.
Education Minister Seema Trikha visited the injured children in the hospital and stated that the primary oversight was the school being open on a holiday.
She also mentioned that a show-cause notice has been sent to the school.
Trikha further indicated that affidavits will be required from all private schools to confirm that their buses are operating in compliance with regulations, and she emphasized that action will be taken in cases of violations.
President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday said the news of death of schoolchildren in a bus accident in Haryana's Mahendragarh district was heart-rending and prayed for strength to the bereaved families to bear "this cruel blow".
In a post on X in Hindi, Murmu said, "The news of the death of innocent children in a school bus accident in Mahendragarh district of Haryana is heart-rending. May God give strength to the bereaved parents and relatives to bear this cruel blow. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured children."
