In a village of Melur region here on Thursday morning hundreds of government school students took to the streets, blocking a Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) bus to protest against commuting delays and unannounced service cancellations.

The demonstration, which took place in Periyakarpoorampatti village under the Kottampatti Union, was the second in the month. The parents of the children earlier staged a protest raising similar demands.

According to locals, more than 100 students residing in Periyakarpoorampatti village—situated within the Kambur panchayat of Melur taluk—rely entirely on TNSTC buses to reach their respective Government Higher Secondary Schools in Sekkipatti, Kambur, and Karungalakudi.

With no alternative public transit available, these students depend heavily on the scheduled bus operating between Natham, Karungalakudi, and Singampunari.

However, parents and students alleged that these buses often flout the official timetable, frequently arriving hours late or skipping the village entirely.

On Thursday morning when a school-hour bus scheduled for 8 a.m. failed to arrive, left with no choice, students bound for the Sekkipatti school set out on foot under the scorching sun.

Meanwhile, frustrated students bound for the Karungalakudi and Kambur schools waited until the bus reached their stop.

Formed human chain

When a government bus finally arrived past its scheduled time, the students refusing to board, formed a human chain to block the vehicle.

“We are being pushed to a corner. Some days the buses are late, and some days they just don’t show up. How are we supposed to maintain our attendance and focus on our studies when we can’t even get to school on time,” questioned the students.

This was not the first time transit issues have disrupted daily life in the region. Just last week, parents of the students had staged a similar road blockade, parking themselves in front of a government bus to protest against the erratic schedules, said Selvaraj, a resident of Kambur village.

That demonstration was only called off after local transport and administrative officials arrived at the spot, giving a firm assurance that immediate corrective measures would be implemented to streamline the school-hour services, he added.

“The officials gave us a written promise last week that this would not happen again,” he said, adding, “Yet, here a week later, we are facing the same trauma. The government talks about improving public school education, but if our children cannot physically reach the classrooms, what is the point?”

The students and the locals’ key demands, included restoration of the suspended route via Sanipatti and Periyakarpoorampatti immediately and guaranteeing punctual operations of the Natham and Melur buses during the morning (7:30 am to 9 am) and evening (4 pm to 5:30 pm) windows.

A TNSTC official told The Hindu that they would look into the issue immediately. Further action would be taken on those who were responsible for cancelling the bus services to those village uninformed, the official added.