Kolkata: Drive carefully, follow traffic signals, obey all transport department rules and ensure drivers don’t have records of traffic violations: Loreto Day School, Elliot Road, on Tuesday reiterated the safety protocol to car pool owners, a day after one of the vehicles, ferrying the institute’s students, met with an accident.The school authorities held a meeting, which was attended by eight carpool owners. The school, apart from urging them to be safe on roads, demanded that they submit their registration papers, driving licence details and contact numbers for an inspection. The drivers were also told to keep parents’ contact numbers for emergency contact. Another set of owners will attend a meeting on Saturday.Nandini Bhattacharjee, education director of Loreto South Asia, said children’s safety was the school’s top priority. She pointed out that though carpool owners worked privately, being directly contacted by parents, the school still decided to meet the owners to stress the safety protocol.The accident took place around 7.30am on Monday near J&N Island, close to the Red Road-Outram Road-Dufferin Road crossing, where a pooled car, ferrying nine Loreto girls, collided with a private car, ferrying three La Martiniere students. Police said both drivers were at fault and that a mechanical test would be held on both vehicles.Loreto Day School does not have school buses, around 15 pooled cars ferry students. While Loreto House and Loreto Bowbazar held similar meetings, La Martiniere Schools plan to issue safety guidelines for parents. School secretary Supriyo Dhar said the school did not run any pooled car service and that parents should be more careful while choosing carpool services and drivers. He added both cars and drivers should have valid documents.The three injured students were released from SSKM Hospital the same day. One student received four stitches on the head and teachers visited her at home on Tuesday.
