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| Lacking necessary infrastructure, driving schools fleece learners | | Charge exorbitantly, authorities silent | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Feb 8: Despite the fact that some of the driving schools operating in Jammu district are bereft of necessary infrastructure mandated by the authorities, but they are openly fleecing the learners by charging as per their sweet will under the nose of authorities concerned.
According to sources in the Transport Department, to start a driving school, the important requirements are that the owner must specify the syllabus and duration of course or courses for imparting instructions in driving any Motor Vehicle. Moreover the owner of the school must have suitable land and building at which such schools might be established while facilities of classroom/demonstration room should be available.
However in some of the schools, the only available facility is the availability of motor vehicles with dual control. “There is no syllabus framed by the schools for the learners, while the learners have been instructed to start practical classes from the day one”, a learner said, adding that as per laid norms, the owner of the school must have a ground, where the practical work (driving classes) should be imparted to the learner but majority of the school owners, have been giving practice session on the national highways with vehicles running at high speed, jeopardizing the lives of other vehicle operators.
As per Transport Department there are 46 registered Driving Schools in Jammu province while in Kashmir province the number of such schools stands at 26.
Sources further said that there was no uniform fee charged and no uniform days of the training provided by the schools. “In one case a driving school is charging Rs 4500 for ten days of training, while another one is charging same amount for 28 days of training”, a learner said, adding that some schools in district, where there were only one or two schools, they have been charging as per their sweet will to the tune of over Rs 8000 for one month, but the Transport Department has no check on these schools’ attempts to charge exorbitantly.
“How can a learner be able to learn driving in ten days? But in absence of any check from the authorities concerned, the school owner charge money and even if the learner shows reluctance about his/her inability to learn, there was no redressal of the grievance by the school management”, a learner said, adding that the theory work was only on papers and there was no actual class work organized for the learners.
Joint Commissioner Transport Department Gurmukh Singh said that the fee was not fixed by the department but by the school owners themselves.
Singh said that the schools should give training sessions in their personal grounds on the dual controlled vehicles, which should have stickers pasted on front and rear sides. On being asked if imparting training along highways is not against norms, Singh said that the concerned Regional Transport Officers (RTOs) should keep check on them.
RTO Jammu Dhananter Singh didn’t pick up his phone for comments. |
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