Transport Department officials inspect the condition of buses run by educational institutions in Vijayawada on Friday. | Photo credit: HANDOUT
NTR District Deputy Transport Commissioner (DTC) M. Purendra said on Friday (08/05/2026) that they are conducting extensive checks on buses run by educational institutions to ensure the safety of students traveling in these vehicles.
In a statement, Mr. Purendra said the special checks began on May 1 and will cover 1,571 buses belonging to educational institutions across the district. He added that 12 special teams had been formed, with each team tasked with inspecting around 130 buses.
The DTC said that inspections are being conducted in accordance with Rule 185(G) of Andhra Pradesh Motor Vehicles (APMV Rules), Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR), AIS-63, AIS-52, AIS-135 and other road safety norms and around 250 buses have been inspected so far and several safety lapses have been found.
The main deficiencies included the installation of seats near emergency exits, obstacles to emergency evacuation, the absence of vehicle position tracking devices (VLTD), the lack of fire suppression systems and fire extinguishers or fire extinguishers not working, the unavailability of safety hammers and the absence of first-aid kits, reflective tapes and other safety equipment.
He said that notices have been issued to the management of the concerned educational institutions for the deficiencies found and they have been ordered to remove all the deficiencies by May 20.
He said evacuation demonstrations were also conducted as part of the special drive to teach students safe evacuation procedures during emergencies. In addition, drivers, operators and employees of educational institutions were informed about the use of fire extinguishers.
Mr. Purendra appealed to all managements of educational institutions to ensure that their buses are fully equipped with safety standard equipment before the start of the new academic year. He warned of strict action under the Motor Vehicles Act (MV Act) and APMV rules against institutions transporting students in faulty or unfit buses without following safety norms.
Published – 08 May 2026 22:42 IST
