Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Nursery, Primary, Matriculation, Higher Secondary and CBSE Schools Association has urged the state government to intervene in the issue of fitness certification for school vehicles, alleging that Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) are pressuring schools to install GPRS devices at inflated prices.

Association general secretary KR Nandakumar said there are over one lakh school vehicles operated by private schools across the state, all of which require fitness certificates ahead of the new academic year. He alleged that transport department officials insist on fitting GPRS devices in these vehicles despite there being no such mandatory requirement for school vehicles.

"It is only mandatory for government vehicles to have GPRS devices as per the Supreme Court order. However, transport officials are forcing private school vehicles to also install them," he claimed.Nandakumar further alleged that while such devices are available in the market for Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000, some RTOs allegedly compel schools to procure them through preferred dealers who charge as high as Rs 18,000.

The association urged the government to immediately stop the practice and appealed to private schools not to pay bribes to obtain fitness certificates. It also warned that private schools may launch protests and suspend operation of their vehicles if the issue continues.