Prices of air tickets peak, Indian students stuck in Italy

While Italy emerged as the focal point of the coronavirus outbreak in Europe, Indian students in the country say they are stranded with flights out of Italy becoming

While Italy emerged as the focal point of the coronavirus outbreak in Europe, Indian students in the country say they are stranded with flights out of Italy becoming increasingly expensive. So far, no Indian in Italy has tested positive for the coronavirus disease, named COVID-19. Indian students say the Indian embassy has not responded to their requests for help and rescue.

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Gourav Dongre, a resident of Nagpur who is currently pursuing a postgraduate degree in mechanical engineering from Sapienza University of Rome, said, “There are messages going around in social media that after March 10, all flights from Rome will be cancelled. In this situation, we don’t know what to do and the Indian embassy in Rome is not responding to our queries.”

Around 200 Indians are currently studying in Sapienza University of Rome, many of whom have sent emails to the Indian embassy seeking help from Indian authorities, but they have not received any response. HT has seen some of these emails. In addition to worries about Rome coming under a lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, a number of students have also lost the part-time jobs they did to earn extra money.

“Local health officers have instructed us to stay in the house as a precautionary measure. So we are staying inside the campus to avoid getting infected, which has affected our earning from part-time jobs,” said Diwakar Singhai, who is originally from Madhya Pradesh and is currently a postgraduate student at Sapienza University of Rome. He is among the students who wrote to the Indian embassy in Rome, requesting guidance.

Students said prices of surgical masks had shot up in Italian cities, making it difficult for most students to afford them. Similarly, prices of air tickets have also risen.

“Generally, it costs ₹18,000-₹20,000 for a one-way flight to India from Rome, but now the price has gone up to ₹35,000,” said Singhal, adding that the Indian government-run Air India had also increased its fares. There are also fewer flights, claimed Indian students. More than 107 people have died of COVID-19 in Italy. On February 26, the Indian government had issued a travel advisory to avoid non-essential travel to Italy, Iran and South Korea.