More convenient than school buses

According to Kapoor, buses assigned from the school are costly and they have a fixed meeting point. Instead, private vehicles are cheap and take kids from their doors.

Seema Malkani from Andheri, who sends her two kids to school by private van, says, "I have no option. If I opt for the school bus, then I will have to walk for around 10 minutes. I have to do other work also. Private buses are convenient for me."u00a0u00a0

Millat school incident

On January 28, 2008, a Maruti van ferrying 11 tiny tots of the Millat School in Jogeshwari, northwestern suburb of Mumbai, suddenly caught fire. The van was fitted with an LPG cylinder. When driver Rafiq Qureshi switched on the ignition, the vehicle burst into flames, indicating gas leakage. The van was not authorized to ply as a school-van. Former deputy chief minister R R Patil had then assured that the government would take care of the medical bills of the victims, besides allotting a compensation of Rs 50,000 to the families of the injured and Rs one lakh to the families of dead.

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Still recovering

Parents Sayyed Muddasir Rehman and Sayeed Saki Ur- Rehman, of two injured children who sustained severe burns, are still fighting for the lives of their kids. Both the children had 60 and 55 per cent burns and reconstructive surgery on them is still going on. Dr Sunil Keswani, cosmetic surgeon, Masina Hospital said, "They are improving, but it will take another two-three years. Only one reconstructive surgery is done and they still have to undergo five-six surgeries of this kind. It's a long task."

u00a0Initially, the school paid the bills. The children get admitted in the general ward every three months.

In another incident in February 2008, a five-year-old boy died after sustaining a head injury in a ramshackle Matador. This vehicle too was ferrying school children without the necessary permit.