“The big metal box with wheels is here!
Eagerly waiting for your cheer!
Hop on and don’t act like a fool!
You are not on a picnic but going to school!”
School buses nowadays have a GPS tracking, a maid or caretaker, a teacher in charge and sometimes ac with reclining seats!
Even with so much luxury kids still do not like to go to school sometimes!
reminds me of our school buses!
read on!
Now KV was more or less exclusive to the defense personnels and so it was understood that even the school buses would be a defence vehicle with seats!
We used to have different sections or classes of vehicles as I remember! So the Jeep and the Jonga were for officers who had individual vehicles. The one ton was like the van of today which was a little bigger than the jeep and had some good seats in the back if needed! Then you had the 3 tons! Now I do not know whether it actually weighed three tons but this was a big vehicle like a lorry!
The average army school bus was a Three ton vehicle with makeup!
Yes! That was the right description!
The back would have seats welded onto the floor and a door and a step welded out! The front would have a school bus number and painted like that. Since one particular school was controlled by a particular unit or division, the school bus also would be from that unit.
There will of course be no maids or caretakers! or even a teacher! You may not get seats most of the time and you still did not care!
We used to rush to the bus stop which was a center spot of the colony and not like how it comes to the door now! We would take our bottles and tiffin boxes and start chatting! Only during the days of the tests would the scene be mellow and silent! Other times it would be full blown noise! Some would be sitting in a corner and eating their toast! I have never had breakfast for the first twenty years of my life except for a glass of milk so food was only lunch!
Since I also do not like to get up early in the morning I would rush when the bus would come to get a seat in the corner and sleep! Only while coming back would I be awake! My brother would wake me up when we used to reach the school which would take at least half an hour of good sleep!
Now since the school did not have school bus of their own, the buses used to come to the school at pick up time since they had other work to do! So when the school gets over we used to walk all the way to the play ground or bus stop and wait for our bus! It was understood that the bus would not wait for us! If you are late it is assumed that you have not come! I have missed the bus couple of times and the walk was not easy! The issue is when you rush to the bus and forget to get your bag!
If you are injured or have a plaster or got some trophy, then you get the special privilege to sit in the front with the driver bhaiyya! It used to be cool but hot and noisy! Plus you would be away from friends and gossip which is why it was not much in demand! Those were not the days of AC and if it was hot, it was always better that the bus keeps moving! The moment the bus used to stop we used to feel hot! And when it used to start, the sudden gust of air over our sweaty body was heavenly!
Once the whole army unit decided to go to a picnic for a change! Since the whole family was to go with so many families we were eagerly waiting on a fine sunday morning for some cool vehicle to come and take us! Imagine our surprise when the vehicle turned out to be! Yes! Our school bus! Of course sitting on the bus with your family and friends in civil dress on a sunday with the destination not the school was still fun!
Without whatsapp or GPS or even a proper monitoring system I now sit and wonder how we used to get back home safe and sound! While now with all these tech available including the name and number of the bus driver! I still worry! Of course when you have Captain Vijayaraj Alagarswami Vijayakanth then you do not have to worry!
Now get your kids ready for the school bus or drop!
Shubh ratri!
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