Parents worried as students sweat in non-AC school buses

Muscat: After almost three weeks since schools reopened, students in many government schools face a similar problem -- buses with no air-conditioning facility. Parents seem to have fed up with lodging complaints with the authorities. They are increasingly worried at the plight of their children who leave for afternoon classes in non-AC buses in temperature above 40 degree Celsius. “Many schools have now afternoon shifts that start at 12 and continue till 4 pm. This makes our children leave for schools at a time when the temperature is too high in buses with no air-conditioning facility. How can they study after travelling in such condition,” wonders Abu Omar, a parent of a third grade. Basheer al Ghafri, another parent said,“we thought change in study time will be our major concern. But non-AC buses are the biggest problem. Our kids suffer from heat inside the school buses. When we asked the driver revealed that the AC has been broken for long”. Parents told the Observer that they had brought the issue to the notice of school principals only to be told that most buses are with no ACs.