Image Courtesy: odishabytes.com
In what seems to be another of the Centre’s glaring incapabilities, forty days after they were air-lifted from Covid-19 hit Iran, two students who were placed under quarantine in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer district, were asked to make their own arrangements to return to their respective homes amid the nationwide lockdown absence of any transportation, reported The Indian Express.
Pursuing a Master’s course at Tehran’s Allahmed Tabatabai University, Minhaj Alam was part of the group which was evacuated along with pilgrims from Kashmir and Ladakh. He said that Central authorities asked him to arrange for transport to reach home, nearly 2000 kms away from Jaisalmer in Uttar Dinajpur district of West Bengal.
He also spoke about how private cab services exploited him even in this situation and demanded Rs. 60,000 for the trip. He said, “Pilgrims and students from Kashmir who returned with me are being sent home, but I am being asked to go home on my own. Why is this discrimination? I went to study in Iran on a fully-funded scholarship programme. I can’t afford to spend Rs 60,000 given the economic condition of my family. I hope the government will make some arrangements.”
Minhaj had undergone four Covid-19 tests since his return on March 15 and all of his tests had been negative. Last week on Friday, authorities informed Minhaj’s family that they would have to make arrangements for his return. Meeraj, Minhaj’s brother said, “We were clearly told that it was easier for them to send him back to Iran or Srinagar.”
Mohammed, another student who had returned with Minhaj, said that his family in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur, too received a similar call from the quarantine centre.
Rohit Kumar Singh, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Rajasthan said that 457 evacuees from Iran who were quarantined at the Army facility in Jaisalmer had been sent to their homes in Srinagar and Ladakh in three batches over three days last week.
Defence spokesperson Col Sombit Ghosh had said that while the Army maintained and ran quarantine centers, it was the Ministry of Home Affairs decided upon the movement of those under quarantine.
When asked about facilitating return of those who have completed their mandatory isolation at these centres, Ministry of Home Affairs spokesperson Vasudha Gupta said she had no information regarding this.
However, while these two students were asked to fend for themselves, around 52 Kashmiri students had been airlifted from Jaisalmer where they were under quarantine after returning from Iran. They were screened and counseled after they landed at Srinagar International Airport and sent to their respective homes.
Till March 29, a total of 941 Indian nationals, mostly pilgrims and students had been evacuated from Iran in six batches.
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