SANGUEM: With uncertainity looming large over the commencement of mining activities in Goa, the only mining company at Tolem in Sanguem which had pressed around four buses for ferrying students withdrew the free transportation facility from Wednesday.
The sudden but expected move though came as no surprise literally put the student community into great hardship.
Incidentally despite the ban on mining business since 2012, the mining company continued the bus service to facilitate the students in attending their classes and come back home safely in time.
The bus service provided the much needed transport service to the students hailing from remote areas of Darguinim, Chiraband, Ponsamoll and Uguem and was seen as a great service towards the society by the parents.
However the withdrawal of buses is severely hit the parents who are left to wonder over the alternate arrangements to be done for their wards to drop to the school and return back home.
With schools starting early, the students hailing from Chiraband, Tolem and Darguinim have no other regular source of transport and were solely dependent on the company sponsored bus for their need.
The students from these villages mostly hail from poor communities and those dependent on mining related businesses. With the withdrawal of company sponsored buses there is a high possibility of students drop out from school for lack of transport facility.
Few parents were seen on Wednesday at the school premises who had come to pick their wards after school hours but it is not feasible on daily basis. While most of the students were seen walking back home after the school hours.
Meanwhile taking note of the difficulties envisaged by the parents and the students due to the withdrawal of the bus service, a meeting has been convened at Uguem village at 8 in the morning on Thursday to discuss on the issue and chalk out possible solution, informed Sarpanch of Uguem Village Panchayat, Sanjay Parwar.
