Back from Sudan, Indians recount the horror of their experiences

Most of those brought to Mumbai belonged to Maharashtra, Gujarat, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Many of them were visiting the African nation, while to others it had been home for a long time.

Mumbai: Mumbai airport on Thursday afternoon witnessed scenes of both jubilation and quiet grief after the IAF aircraft, Globemaster C 17, deposited 244 Indians who had been rescued from the horrors of strife-torn Sudan. Another IAF aircraft is likely to arrive on Friday.

Back from Sudan, Indians recount the horror of their experiences

Most of those brought to Mumbai belonged to Maharashtra, Gujarat, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Many of them were visiting the African nation, while to others it had been home for a long time.

Pappu Pande (45) from Kalyan worked as a mechanic for Omega Steel, an Indian company, along with over 300 other Indians in the historical city of Soba. Being the epicentre of the civil war, the city has been bombed since April 15. “None of us in the factory could sleep amid those sounds of destruction,” he recollected. “One of the bombs fell just 300 metres from where we were; our lives were saved by a whisker. We didn’t have any food and no way of going out to get it. For over a week, we all survived on packaged food and water.”

Saqlain Azim Ranani, who spent six of the eight years of his life in Sudan, too averred that he would never go back. The child witnessed scenes that he had hitherto only seen in videogames—bombs falling on buildings and showers of bullets killing people—during his last ten days there. His elder sister, Amrin, remembers the sight of a fighter jet burning in mid-air and feeling anxious about where it would land. “We had to leave everything there,” she said. “I think the house we lived in would be burnt by now.”

Eleven-year-old Farhana Dudekula from Pune had left India to spend the summer holidays with her father in Sudan, without an inkling of the grisly experience awaiting her. “We were cooped up in the house for one week,” she said. “The news channels were talking about thousands of people dying outside. I was scared for our safety.” Smiling with relief despite the long and arduous journey the family had to undertake, Farzana said she was happy they were all safe.

While relieved to be on safe shores, the Lodhiyas still want to go back to the country they call home. Anand was born in Sudan and has lived all his life there while his wife Rupal lived there for 25 years. They have family in Rajkot where Anand’s parents, who too were born in Sudan, shifted just two months ago.

“Things were not as bad in our town Omdurman as in Khartoum,” said Anand. “We had to undertake a 12-hour bus ride to reach the capital, from where the Indian embassy could help us. While there were several armed men who got into the bus throughout, they usually do not harm Indians.” Anand runs a two-wheeler business in Sudan, and wishes to return as soon as things normalise.

The mention of their hometown brought Rupal to tears. It was a normal day for her—husband at the shop, son at school and she herself busy with the household—that suddenly turned into a black day. “We had to pack whatever we could and leave. I have no idea what the condition of my home is,” she said, tears rolling down her cheeks. Her 11-year-old son Samar has been affected by the strife he witnessed in Sudan and does not share his parents’ sentiments about going back.

Forum Shah, Borivali resident and academic manager from a school, told HT that she and others saved their lives by staying in their houses and sleeping on the floor to avoid getting affected by the shelling. “We never expected the situation to get so bad,” she said. “It was a horror story. I regularly saw bullets being fired and places being bombed. Thanks to the Indian embassy, which worked for three days and nights, to get us out, we are okay today. But we are worried for the 1000-plus Indians who are still stuck there.”

Azim Razak Rainani, a resident of Jalgaon, said his family and he were shocked by the bombing for the last ten days and horrified to see videos of people dying. “We are a family of nine who returned,” he said. “The Indian embassy made a passport for my daughter on a very urgent basis so that we could all travel. I am really grateful. I have been staying in Sudan for the last five years and never thought I would ever face such a situation.”

Many of the Indians who hailed from Gujarat went from the airport to their state by a bus arranged by the Gujarat tourism department. They were seen off by the department’s deputy manager Shweta Jukar. But those from Bihar had to make their own arrangements. “The Bihar government has made no arrangements for us,” said Sangam Sahani, an AC mechanic from Bihar. “The flight fares are very high. I will stay in Mumbai for a day and then decide how to leave.”

A Mumbai International Airport Limited spokesperson said that 300 snack boxes had been provided to the passengers on arrival. Four coaches and one Ambulift was used to ferry passengers from the tarmac and 10 senior citizens availed of wheelchair assistance. Ten dedicated counters were made operational at immigrations for processing and clearance.