Back from war-torn Iran, Valley students head to home towns
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday confirmed the arrival of 110 Indian students, including 94 from Kashmir, in Delhi and said that the government had made transport arrangement for their journey back to Kashmir. Out of the 94, 20 students have already reached Kashmir via flights.
As many as 94 students from Jammu and Kashmir were among the 110 people evacuated from war-affected Iran on Wednesday. They were taken to Armenia before being flown to Doha. The students arrived in Delhi from the Qatari capital early Thursday.
'94 of our students evacuated from Iran have safely reached Delhi. The Government is making transport arrangements to ensure their smooth journey home, which will be in place within the next few hours,' Omar Abdullah wrote on X.
However, after reaching at Delhi Airport the students claimed that no one from J&K government was there to receive them and also criticised the state government for making poor transport arrangement.
However, new buses were arranged by the government on the intervention of chief minister Omar. 'The chief minister has taken note of the request of the students evacuated from Iran regarding the quality of buses arranged to transport them from Delhi to J&K. The resident commissioner has been tasked with coordinating with the JKRTC to ensure proper deluxe buses are arranged,' wrote office of J&K chief minister on X.
Earlier J&K Students Union had also taken up this issue with the government and requested to arrange air tickets for the evacuated students. 'We had raised the issue of inadequate transportation facilities and the replacement of SRTC buses for Kashmiri students evacuated from Iran with the CM's office. Following this, we were informed by J&K CM's advisor, that new sleeper buses have now been arranged to ensure more comfortable travel for the students. While our primary demand remains connecting flights, we appreciate the prompt response and intervention,' J&K Students Association convener Nasir Khuehami said.
He said it was after a wait of nearly 10 hours, the sleeper deluxe buses finally arrived for the students.
'The students are now on way to Kashmir and could reach Srinagar tonight or past midnight, he said, adding that the students reached Delhi Airport at 3.30 am on Thursday after their flight got delayed.
Saba Rasool from Srinagar who was among the few students to reach Srinagar thanked Government of India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for timely evacuation. 'I had booked a morning ticket and reached home in the afternoon. I am thankful to Government of India and PM,' she said.
There are still hundreds of Kashmiri students who are being evacuated.
Kashmiri students usually opt for Iranian universities because of their affordability and similar cultural milieu. The students are spread in Tehran, Shiraz and Qom. Iran is home to more than 4,000 Indian students, half of them from J&K, who are enrolled in medical and other professional courses.
Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir students association said that around 600 Indian students, including 500 from Kashmir, have safely reached Mashhad from Qom.
'This is the second group of students who were earlier relocated to Qom, where they stayed for three days. Their evacuation process is currently underway. From Mashhad, they are expected to be taken to Turkmenistan, from where they will likely board flights to Delhi tomorrow. We are maintaining constant communication with the ministry of external affairs (MEA) and the Indian Embassy in Iran to ensure the safety and smooth evacuation of the students,' said Khuehami.
He further said that 140 Kashmiri students from Tehran University have been relocated to Gilan Province in Iran. 'The students have been relocated to a safer place by the university administration, but have been enduring immense mental and emotional trauma due to the ongoing uncertainty and deteriorating security situation.' He said this is the same group in which two Kashmiri students suffered injuries after their dormitory was struck by shrapnel during a nearby airstrike.
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