Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): After spending more than a month in the Army's quarantine facility in Jaisalmer, Kashmiri students are expected to arrive in Srinagar on Wednesday, officials said.
According to the officials, the first batch of 52 students who have completed their mandatory quarantine period in Rajasthan are being brought to Srinagar today afternoon.
"First batch will reach Srinagar at around 2 pm while the remaining students will be brought back in batches in the days to come," a senior official told ETV Bharat, adding, "Those having certificate of being negative for COVID-19 with them, will be directed to stay in home quarantine and others will have to stay in government quarantine facility in the city."
At least 276 students from Kashmir, who were studying in Iran, and were evacuated in the wake of outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic were kept in a quarantine facility at Jaisalmer and Jodhpur of Rajasthan. Most of these students were pursuing MBBS and other courses in Iran, one of the worst hit countries by COVID-19.
Speaking to ETV Bharat on the development, another officer from Lieutenant Governor Girish Chander Murmu's office said, "It has been more than a month since these students are staying at quarantine centres in Rajasthan. Following the reports of ETV Bharat and other media outlets, the L-G's advisor Baseer Ahmed Khan took up the matter with the concerned quarters in both New Delhi and Jaisalmer, after which it was decided that the students 'stuck' in Jaisalmer will be brought back in batches from April 15 onwards."
"The Jammu and Kashmir government must ensure all the students kept in Army facilities at Jaisalmer and Jodhpur are brought back to Srinagar. If they are supposed to be in quarantine, we assure that there will be no loopholes," he said.
The Indian government evacuated around 300 students after March 14 from the country and as a precautionary measure, the evacuees were isolated for 14-days at an Army Wellness Centre in Jaisalmer under medical supervision. After the global outbreak of novel coronavirus, Iran became one of the worst-hit countries, where more than 3,000 people have died due to the disease.
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