Mubashir Bukhari
Srinagar (NVI): Scores of Kashmiri students have been stranded in Jammu and other parts of the country after they were not able to move easily because of lack of transport or other restrictions imposed by the government in the wake of COVI-19.
Most of the students, who were pursuing studies in various parts of the country, are not able to come back to the valley, due to restrictions and lack of transport facilities.
Rashid Ahmad, a Kashmir student pursuing a Ph.D. in Punjab told NVI that after facing a lot of difficulties, they were able to reach their home villages in Kashmir.
“Our university hostel was shut by the administration and we had no other choice but to return home. Yesterday when we reached Jammu, we didn’t get any transport and had to spend a night under the open sky in Jammu,” Rashid said.
Another student Khalid Ahmad Dar, who is pursuing Nursing in Bangalore, too narrated the same ordeal. Khalid was preparing for his exams in his hostel room when college authorities asked them to vacate their hostels and return home.
“We had already booked for tickets for today because we didn’t know, it was Janta curfew. We have to face lot of difficulties while boarding cab till airport,” he said.
Khalid said when they reached Srinagar today, they had to wait for hours to reach his hometown Sopore. “Due to restrictions, we were blocked on Srinagar-Baramulla highway for hours, forces were not allowing us to move,” Khalid said.
Besides these students, around 100 students are stranded in Jammu and other parts of India currently. “Only a few cabs left for Srinagar on Sunday. Most of the students cramped just to reach home. When transport is limited, cab owners start overcharging. Many students are running out of cash,” said one of the students.
In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, all the educational institutions have been shut till March 31.
Spokesperson of Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, Nasir Khuehami said that hundreds of Kashmir students are stranded in different parts of the country. “The airfares are very expensive and students can’t afford such huge chunk of money,” he said.
He said some air ticketing agents are taking advantage of the closure of Srinagar-Jammu Highway and over-charging these students.
The association has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri to look into the matter.
