School buses should get priority akin to ambulances: Jharkhand CM

Ranchi, April 22: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Friday said in summer, school buses should get the same priority, on the road, as ambulances so that students can reach home early .

The chief minister said that common people should try to give way to school buses considering the sweltering heat.

Speaking at a function of St. Xavier’s School, Doranda, on its completion of 62 years, Soren said “At present, the temperature is on the rise at several places. In such a situation, a school bus should get the right to proceed before other vehicles, as an ambulance, so that young children reach home early. The government will decide in this regard soon.” Most parts of Jharkhand reeled under heat wave conditions till Wednesday.

The mercury has dropped by four to five degrees Celsius in many parts due to light rainfall in isolated places in the past 24 hours, weather officials said.

Ranchi Meteorological Centre has predicted that another spell of heat wave might start from Garhwa, Palamu, Chatra, Koderma, and Giridih from April 25. State capital Ranchi, which recorded a maximum temperature of 37.2 degrees Celsius on Friday, might sizzle at 40 degrees Celsius from April 24, weather officials said. 

Given the heat wave conditions across Jharkhand, the school education and literacy department recently revised the school timings.

The institutions have been asked to operate between 6 am and 12 noon. 

Significantly, on April 13 due to the heatwave alert in several districts the state education and literacy department changes the school timing, after series of protest from parents and teachers, from the earlier 7 am to 1 pm to between 6 am and 12 noon. However, with the current heat even noon is scorching for the children.

Hemant Soren who was the chief guest at a function to mark the completion of 62 years of St Xavier’s School in Ranchi also inaugurated the diamond jubilee block of the school and inspected the facilities at the school and praised the Jesuits for contribution in improving educational standards of the state.