Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh): A crackdown on school vans sparked a strike in Jabalpur on Tuesday, leaving thousands of students without their regular transport. The protest came after police and the Regional Transport Office (RTO) launched a special safety drive following a school van accident and impounded 46 allegedly illegal Maruti vans carrying schoolchildren. Van operators parked their vehicles, marched to Ghantaghar and submitted a memorandum, alleging they were being forced to obtain costly taxi permits instead of school permits.
The strike disrupted the routine of students and parents as school vans remained off the roads. Many students dependent on these vehicles for their daily commute were unable to reach school.
Members of the School Van Drivers' Association gathered with their vehicles before marching to Ghantaghar, where they submitted a memorandum addressed to the district administration and raised objections to the ongoing enforcement action.
According to the operators, authorities are pressuring them to obtain taxi permits even though their vehicles are used only to transport schoolchildren and not general passengers.
They claimed that obtaining a school permit costs around ₹15,000, while the overall expense involved in obtaining a taxi permit could rise to nearly ₹55,000. Operators said the additional cost would impose a significant financial burden on them.
The association maintained that since the vans operate exclusively for schoolchildren, they should be allowed to function under school permits rather than being required to obtain taxi permits.
The operators also sought relief from what they described as repeated harassment during enforcement drives by the police and transport authorities.
After submitting the memorandum, the association warned the district administration that the agitation could be intensified if their concerns were not addressed.
The operators said that if enforcement action and pressure over taxi permits continued, they could completely suspend school van services, which would further affect students who rely on these vehicles for transportation.
