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17 students from south Malwa region decline to return home
Three students each from Muktsar and Faridkot, seven from Mansa and four from Bathinda have declined to return to India and reportedly moved to different European countries for employment opportunities
Bathinda: Seventeen students from Punjab’s south Malwa region, who had gone to Ukraine to study mostly medicine, have declined to return to India and reportedly moved to different European countries for employment opportunities.
According to the official database prepared by the district authorities, three students each from Muktsar and Faridkot, seven from Mansa and four from Bathinda have declined to return to India.
These youth have reportedly moved to different European countries, including Poland, Portugal, Germany, Hungary and Slovakia, for unspecified pursuits in the last few days.
Information from family members of some of these students indicates that the youth are unlikely to pursue studies and plan to look for employment opportunities. Some even avoided sharing future plans of their children.
It was not confirmed whether the students entered these countries on valid travel documents or not.
Muktsar deputy commissioner Harpreet Sudan said three persons, including a married couple, studying in Ukraine moved to Poland and Portugal.
“Of the total 29 Muktsar students in Ukraine on a study visa, 24 have returned safely. Three have declined to come back to India and the whereabouts of two others are not found in the district,” said Sudan.
In Mansa district, seven students, highest in the south Malwa belt, have expressed disinterest to return to India.
Mansa deputy commissioner Mohinder Pal said all of them had gone to study medicine and on being contacted, their families say their children do not want to return home.
Families of four students from Bathinda have reportedly informed the district authorities that their wards have moved to other countries and do not intend to travel back to India.
Father of a young woman from Bathinda, who was enrolled in an MBBS programme, said she had taken shelter at a gurdwara in Portugal.
“After getting out of Kyiv, she moved to Poland, Germany and finally reached Portugal. She has yet to make a decision on her next move but she is not interested in returning to India,” said the father.
According to the information gathered from the family members of the students from Faridkot, a language course student has already moved to Portugal, while two others have decided to stay in Poland.
Moga deputy commissioner Harish Nayar said that three of Moga’s youth are expected to reach the district in the next 24 hours, whereas the travel plan of another three is yet to be updated.
