Photo: Screenshot of a video posted on Webo

A grandmother in South China's Hainan Province has recently come under criticism for pushing her 8-year-old grandson in a "cage cart" to school every day. She responded to online comments on Tuesday by saying she wasn't "spoiling" him, and that it was "just a way to keep the kid safe." 

The "cage cart" at the centre of the controversy is a specially designed cage-shaped cart with a red cloth covering the top. In a video filmed by a passerby, the grandson got into the "cage", sat down and was then pushed by his grandmother to the school. 

The 72-year-old woman said she has been using the cart to send the child for two years, and that she had designed it herself, spending more than 1,000 yuan ($150) on it.

"It is simply a transportation tool and it is safer than motorcycles, which other people use to send kids to school," she said, refuting criticism that she was spoiling the kid. 

Some netizens said that the child was old enough to walk to school, and did not need to be pushed there by an elderly woman. Others said the cart itself is not as "safe" as the woman claimed, and that the child would be in bigger danger if an accident happens, as he would be trapped in the cart. 

"It is really hard to say whether the kid will be made fun of at school after being seen in such a 'cage'," said one netizen.