A school excursion went awry for 57 children from Motihari who had to spend Tuesday night under the open sky on Bailey Road here in the state capital.

The students of the Government Upgraded School in Kotwa area of Motihari, the East Champaran district headquarters around 152km north of Patna, had gone on an educational trip to the Nalanda ruins, which are around 75km southeast of the state capital. The students, shepherded by five teachers including their principal, had set off early morning for Nalanda.

When they reached Patna on the way back, the bus in which they were travelling developed a fault near the zoo on Bailey Road. The school authorities prepared dinner on the open road and the students had to sleep on the pavement.

The education department has suspended the teachers.

“The case is one of gross negligence by schoolteachers who had accompanied the students,” director, primary education, Arvind Kumar Verma said. “The principal should have contacted the district education officers (DEOs) at Motihari or Patna who would have made alternative arrangements for the students. The teachers had not used their common sense.”

An inquiry has been ordered against the teachers.

The Motihari district administration has ordered a separate inquiry. “The Motihari DEO has been asked to conduct the probe,” said Motihari district magistrate Raman Kumar.

The excursion was organised under the Mukhyamantri Paribhraman Yojana to acquaint students with historical and cultural sites of the state. Under the scheme, a school gets Rs 20,000 yearly.

An education department official said it was also being probed why the bus did not bypass Patna. “Making the students sleep on a pavement could have been dangerous,” the official said. “The road is busy through the night as trucks pass by. The students also had to suffer mosquito bites and insect stings.”

Economist N.K. Choudhary said: “The education department should issue guidelines to schools on excursions. Also, a contingency fund has to be provided to the schools.”