Kashmiri students, quarantined in Rajasthan, seek govt help to go home

Some female students have health issues and cannot stay in Jaisalmer for long

Parents of the students, who are stuck in Rajasthan, at Press Enclave in Srinagar | Umer Asif Parents of the students, who are stuck in Rajasthan, at Press Enclave in Srinagar | Umer Asif

Over 100 Kashmiri students who have completed mandatory quarantine in Rajasthan after they were airlifted from Iran have appealed to the J&K government to help them to return to Kashmir.

The students, most of them females from different parts of Kashmir, said they were brought to Rajasthan in the second week of March and kept at an Army camp in Jaisalmer.

They said some Indian pilgrims, who were also airlifted from Iran, were kept in a different block on the same camp.

“Our swabs tested negative after we completed the two-week quarantine period,” said Umme Parvaiz Khan, a student. 

“We were hoping that we could go to Kashmir after out tests came as negative, but the authorities said they cannot send us because of the lockdown across India.” She said they have now been lodged in a different building. 

“It is very hot here,’’ said another student, who wished not to be named. “The water is good, but, all of us share the same washroom.”

She said they don’t have proper clothing as the weather in Iran was still cold when they were evacuated.

She said that some female students have many health issues to contend and cannot stay in Jaisalmer for long. 

She appealed to the J&K government to help them to reach Kashmir.

She added that if they are not evacuated they risk contracting the coronavirus as some of the pilgrims have tested positive for COVID-19.

The parents of these students on Saturday visited the Press Enclave in Kashmir in Srinagar and urged the government to bring back their children.

“My daughter and many others are stuck in Rajasthan. We request the government for help,” said Parvaiz Ahmed, a parent. He said they are ready to pay for the travel of their children if the government wants.

Another parent said their children stuck in Rajasthan are students of Tehran University where they are enrolled in different professional courses like MBBS.

Meanwhile, more than 470 Kashmir students who were kept in different quarantine centres in Srinagar were allowed to go home after they completed their quarantine. The police and health officials cheered them when they left the quarantine centres.