Mumbai school bus fire: 12-yr-old dies

A 12-year-old boy, who suffered 70 per cent burns in Thursday's school bus fire in Mumbai, died on Saturday. He was on the ventilator.

Twenty five students of CTK High School in Mumbai's suburb Panvel were injured on Thursday when the school bus they were traveling in caught fire. There were 40 children onboard the bus.

According to reports, the bus was engulfed in flames after a short circuit. The alert children used the emergency exit to escape, but the ones at the front of the bus were injured, some critically.

The students were taken to a local hospital, where the condition of eight was critical. The bus driver and owner were arrested.

Supreme Court guidelines:

The Supreme Court has a set of guidelines to ensure safety of schoolchildren. Here are few a important ones that all schools and bus operators need to follow:

• A fire extinguisher is an absolute must in the bus and the school name and phone number also must be written.
• School busses must have a First-Aid kit, in case any child needs or any untoward incident happens.
• The windows of bus must be fitted with horizontal grills so that emergency evacuation is easy and fast.
• Buses carrying school children must have School Bus boldly written on the back and front.
• If it is a private hired bus, a plate saying 'On School Duty' must be clearly written.