From Our Correspondent
TURA, May 16: Prioritising export profits over pupil safety, authorities in South Garo Hills are allowing heavy coal armadas to dominate narrow, crumbling roads during peak school hours, forcing rural students to dodge multi-axle trucks just to reach their classrooms.
Coal transported from the Nongalbibra-Jadigittim belt reportedly moves toward Baghmara at night but continues toward the Gasuapara export point at approximately 7:00 AM. This timing directly coincides with the morning commute for students, many of whom walk to school unaccompanied.
Local resident Nipon Marak, representing concerned parents, highlighted the daily risks posed by the heavy tonnage on the district’s crumbling infrastructure. Residents alleged that trucks frequently brush past children, while stagnant water from deep potholes is routinely splashed onto students and pedestrians. “The movement of these heavy vehicles during the morning rush is a disaster waiting to happen,” Marak said. He urged the district administration to restrict coal transport to nighttime hours, prioritising student safety over export logistics.
The residents have called for immediate intervention to regulate traffic timings, noting that the current situation treats the safety of the next generation as collateral damage for the coal trade.
