Balakovo students ride cold train to Saratov Olympiad
A group of Balakovo students endured a cold train journey to Saratov for an academic competition.
Eleven schoolchildren from Balakovo, heading to the regional stage of the All-Russian Olympiad in Social Studies, endured a five-hour train ride without heating. The incident occurred this morning on a day when school classes were canceled in the city due to severe frost.
As reported to the ProBalakovo editorial office by a reader, a group of children with accompanying teachers left Balakovo at 5 a.m. The train on the Balakovo–Saratov route was not equipped for transportation in the cold: the heating system in the car was not working, and according to the source, the toilet was also out of order. Under such conditions, the schoolchildren spent about five hours on the road.
The trip was organized by the Balakovo District Education Committee for a team of 11 people to participate in the regional stage of the Olympiad on January 28 and 29. At a meeting held today with the head of Balakovo District, Sergei Barulin, journalists asked about the incident. The district head stated that he was not informed about the problems with the trip.
Later, the administration of Balakovo District issued an official comment. It confirmed that the trip was organized on railway transport «for the purpose of safely delivering children in the winter period.» Contact with the accompanying teacher was maintained, and the fact of no heating in the car was confirmed.
An appeal will be sent to the railway company today demanding that they consider equipping trains on this route with cars with functional heating during the winter period. According to the administration«s statement, conversations were held in advance with the parents of the schoolchildren, and written consents for the trip were obtained from them.
After arrival in Saratov, accommodation in the dormitory of the engineering lyceum and rest before the Olympiad are provided for the children. The team«s return to Balakovo is scheduled for January 29, after the completion of the Olympiad. It is expected that the return trip will be organized taking into account today»s incident.
