Unable to return to China, MBBS students worry about belongings, experience

An Indian studying MBBS from a Chinese university said there were several videos doing the rounds among the student community of piles of luggage dumped outside hostel rooms in China

Indian medical students enrolled in Chinese universities have not returned to their campuses due to travel restrictions for past 20 months and are now worried about their belongings left behind in hostels amid reports that it was being dumped out to make room for fresh students.

An old photo of Wuhan University graduates attenting convocation before Covid 19 led to closure of campuses and lockdown of cities. (AFP Photo/Representative use)

“There are several videos doing the rounds among the student community of piles of luggage dumped outside hostel rooms. It’s been close to two years since we left and have no idea as to what is happening to our belongings,” said a third-year medical student, on the condition of anonymity.

Indian students of Chinese universities returned last year following the outbreak of the pandemic-- first detected among humans in China in December 2019-- leading to complete lockdown of Chinese cities and varsities in early 2020. Many left their belongings behind hoping to return soon, which has not materialised due to a continuous travel ban imposed by China on international students. Only those from South Korea and the United States of America have been allowed to return so far.

In June, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) issued a notice asking Indian students studying in international universities, stuck in India due to the pandemic, to write to its overseas Indian affairs (OIA) office about difficulties in reaching their universities along with their contact details.

Thereafter, affected students urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an open letter to intervene and facilitate students’ return. However, there’s been no response yet.

Ishwari Chandran, who recently graduated from the Zhejiang University at Hangzhou, China, completed her internship online. Fortunately, Chandran’s university continues to store the belongings of foreign students. “My university has let us keep all our things. They haven’t charged any dorm fee either. In fact, they refunded a part of it for the days we weren’t there,” she said.

Meanwhile, students attending lectures online are under mental stress and anxiety. Neha, a fourth year MBBS student at Jianghan University, Wuhan, China, said, “The MBBS course requires students to gain practical experience. For almost two years we’ve been bereft of that. It’s starting to bother my confidence.”