The completely damaged bus of Manthan International School. Source: Parents
Hyderabad: A day after a bus of Manthan International School in Tellapur, Sangareddy district, burst into flames on Tuesday, September 8, concerned parents are seeking answers from the institution on its safety standards.
The incident happened while the students were boarding the bus, reported The Hindu. There were four students in the vehicle when smoke was spotted coming out. The students were escorted out, and there were no injuries reported.
The report said the incident happened between 2.30 and 3 pm, as that is the time for boarding and leaving, as per the route. It said that by the time the school staff got fire extinguishers and water, the bus was completely engulfed in fire.
It quoted a parent, Krishna Vamsi, as saying, “The school mailed us that ‘transportation will be delayed’ at around 5 pm… It was through the parent-pickup group and the video clips that we came to know.”
Parents visited the school on Wednesday, seeking answers, but were allegedly told by the school management that the International Schools Partnership (iSP), which governs the school, would make a decision once its officials arrive. The iSP is in Bengaluru and has two schools in Hyderabad. The Mandal Educational Officer has also visited the school on Wednesday and enquired about the incident, said the report
In a letter a parent wrote to the school administration, a copy of which is with Siasat.com, another parent, Sukhamrit Kaur, said that she picks up her daughter herself. She witnessed the accident, and while she lives within a km of the school, she could smell the smoke even at her home.
“What concerned me even more, however, was what I witnessed during the evacuation,” she wrote, claiming that panicked students were running onto the street and that she dropped two children herself.
Asking if the school followed some SOP, she asked, “Did the school know that these children had left the premises?” Did the school know where they were? Were their parents contacted? Was there a complete student-by-student headcount? Was every child accounted for before the situation was considered under control?”
She added that she was told by another mother, whose child was on the affected bus, T18, that she had no information on her child’s whereabouts. “Even if there were 20–30 children on that bus, was it not the school’s most fundamental responsibility to proactively contact the parents of every child travelling on T18 and tell them?”
More importantly, she said the school needs to look at its emergency preparedness. “What happens if tomorrow there is a larger fire? What happens if there is an electrical emergency? What happens if there is structural damage or another situation that causes children to panic and evacuate outside the planned process?” She also cited a similar episode in January 2026, adding that only parents of children on that bus must have been contacted, which, she pointed out, was not right.
“There is a difference between sharing a child’s personal information only with that child’s parents and selectively informing only some parents about a serious safety incident,” she wrote. She also expressed dissatisfaction over how the school sought to dismiss it as an incident and that the top management had not responded at all.
Worried parents have come together to get their grievances addressed. One parent has dug out information about the bus from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ VAHAN citizen portal.
While the portal shows it as a non-AV vehicle, the bus operated an AC system. The parents have asked the Transport Department to verify if the system was authorised, The Hindu
said.They have addressed a letter to the District Collector, Sangareddy; the Superintendent of Police; the Director of School Education and the District Educational Officer; the District Transport Officer, and the District Fire Officer.
The letter also sought an investigation into previous fire incidents and a full-fleet inspection, preservation of forensic evidence, and a safety assessment of fire detection and alarm systems, even in classrooms and other areas. Siasat.com has a copy of the complaint.
This post was last modified on September 9, 2026 6:15 pm