Scores of Kashmiri students stranded at different places across the country have made a fervent appeal to the J&K administration to help them reach home.
Greater Kashmir received several emails and phone calls fromthe distressed students saying that because of the lockdown across the countryin the wake of covid-19 spread, they were stranded at airports or in theirpaying-in rooms. They said that in this “hopeless” situation they will eitherstarve to death or suffer mental agony.
“There are only three of us here in the entire building. Wedon’t have enough ration. The Tiffin service has also been closed for the pasttwo days. The guy who used to deliver potable water has also stopped cominghere,” said a girl student from Aligarh. “At least let us die with our parentsat home,” she said while appealing the authorities to arrange buses or cabs forthem.
The student, who requested not to reveal her identity, saidthey were even ready to shift to a quarantine home in J&K. “At least, wewill have a hope to reunite with our parents after 10 or 15 days,” she said.
Hundreds of Kashmiri students are stranded in various partsof the country due to the lockdown. “We are two students from Kashmir strandedat Chennai airport. We had visited the National Atmospheric Research Laboratoryfor training for our PhD related work. Our flight was scheduled in the morningyesterday to Srinagar. Unfortunately it got cancelled and we have no place togo here,” a scholar said in an email to Greater Kashmir.
The research scholar said they had approached severalauthorities for help but in vain. “Nobody is listening to us, Please help us.We cannot even go back to our institute as they are not allowing us,” he said.The scholars demanded they should be evacuated to Valley saying they willfollow all procedures of quarantine. “Please evacuate us somehow from hereotherwise we may starve to death. My mother (a widow) is waiting for me,” readan email.
Another email received by Greater Kashmir said that twoboys, Mir Amaan Ullah and Nasir Mehran Lone of Chanapora who were travellingfrom Bangladesh are now stuck at Lakhanpur sub district hospital for last twodays despite revealing their complete travel history. “But the authoritiesdon’t allow us to travel to Srinagar. We have been properly tested and have nosymptoms of COVID-19,” the email read. “We are helpless on the way. It will beyour most kindness to help us get our children handed over to districtauthority Srinagar so that they will get proper care in this troubled time,”the email read. Another e-mail received from a student said that they hadbooked their flight from Delhi to Srinagar on 25 March but were stranded due tosuspension of air travel.
“Initially the government in its official statement saiddomestic flights won’t be shut but later on next day they issued an order ofshutting down all domestic flights. We are stuck here and have no accommodationhere,” a student said in an email.
He said there are hundreds of students and other Kashmiriswho are stuck in various parts of India like Delhi and Bangalore. “Thegovernment did not give us enough time to reschedule our flights due to whichwe are stranded here,” the student said. When contacted, Advisor to LieutenantGovernor J&K, Baseer Ahmed Khan, who is also overall incharge ofcoronavirus control efforts for Kashmir division said they are reviewing thesituation. “We will take a decision accordingly after taking a review of thesituation,” he said.