Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The bus drivers' strike affected the opening of several schools after the winter break on Tuesday. Schools scheduled to open from Tuesday remained closed. At their own level, schools sent messages on Monday to inform about the holiday. Winter holiday was declared in schools from December 23 to January 1. A few schools decided to open on Tuesday.
There are about 2000 small and big schools in the city. A large number of children in these schools reach the campuses by buses. Since there is no public transport of any kind, the parents of the children were also not in favour of sending them to school.
"I had already decided that I will not send my daughter to school on Tuesday," Girish Kumar, father of class 6 student, said. He feared for the safety of his daughter amidst the ongoing protests.
Many children could not reach Indore due to non-availability of buses. "My children had gone to Sehore to their grandparents' place. They were supposed to reach Indore on Monday. Due to the bus strike, they could not leave and hence, had to skip school. Now, the school has also declared a holiday, so it is good that they will come when the situation improves," said Madhur Sharma.
School bus drivers, however, said they were ready to drive if they were guaranteed safety. "I have no problem in driving the bus. But, most of the bus drivers are on strike and they can stop me on the way. That is why I will not drive the bus," said a bus driver on condition of anonymity.
