Northeast students stranded in and around Chandigarh anxious as they await evacuation

Around 300 students

With the extension of the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown, over 300 students from different states of the Northeast studying in various institutes across the tricity are anxious as they are still waiting to be evacuated.

John Nimasow from Arunachal Pradesh, who studies in Panjab University, said, “We are safe here, but our parents are worried about us. We do not know when the lockdown will be relaxed. Many of us want to return home.”

Kago Gumbo Ji Ziro of Arunachal Pradesh is a student of ITFT College in Chandigarh. He said, “We have prepared a list of more than 200 students from Arunachal Pradesh studying in tricity. Around 80% of them want to return home.”

Abhilash Rajkhowa, who hails from Assam and is a student of Panjab University, said, “Staying away from parents in these trying times has inflicted psychological stress. As means of transportation were ceased before most of us could travel home, we missed one of the most significant festivals in our culture, Bohag Bihu. We have even planned to hire a bus if government does not provide transportation to us.”

“Few days ago, 391 students were allowed to return to Assam from Kota. It instilled hope among the stranded students of the state in tricity. But till now no step has been taken to evacuate the Assamese students from here,” said Rajkhowa.