SRINAGAR: More than 200 Indian students, mostly from J&K, remain stranded near the Astara border in Iran as evacuation efforts have stalled, with families alleging poor coordination and lack of communication from authorities.
Suhail Muzamil Qadri, whose son is among the students stuck in Iran, said the evacuation process has come to a halt after an initial group of around 70–80 students was successfully moved out of Iran.
“Those who had tickets for March 14, as well as some with tickets for March 18, 19, and 20, were evacuated. But students scheduled to travel on March 15, 16, and 17 are still stranded,” he said.
About 200 to 250 students, mostly from J&K, are stuck at the border near Astara as the Azerbaijani officials are allegedly refusing to grant transit permission to the students.
“We have flagged this issue with the Ministry of External Affairs,” J&K Students Association national convenor Nasir Khuehani said.
Only 24 students have been evacuated from Azerbaijan, while more than 140 have been evacuated from the Iran border to Armenia and therefrom to Delhi and Mumbai.
According to Qadri, many students have fallen ill, suffering from fever, fatigue, and influenza, while also running short of money.
“We have no updates about what is happening at the border or why they are not being allowed to cross into Azerbaijan,” Qadri added, expressing concern that his son’s ticket, scheduled for Wednesday, may also go to waste.
“If India is facing problems in evacuation from Azerbaijan, it should have coordinated with the Indian embassy in Azerbaijan for their evacuation,” he said.
Parents say that despite arranging visas, tickets, and necessary documentation as instructed, their children have been left high and dry without adequate support.
“There should have been a systematic evacuation plan. The Indian embassy should have coordinated better, especially with authorities in Azerbaijan,” Qadri said.
Asifa, another parent, said families were initially advised to arrange travel independently. “We were told students would be escorted to the border, but beyond that, they had to manage on their own”.
She said the evacuation plans kept changing, forcing families to rebook tickets at significantly higher costs. “First, we were told to route through Armenia, then Azerbaijan. We complied with every instruction, but now students are stuck despite having valid tickets.”
Dr Mohammad Momin Khan, National Vice President of All India Medical Students Association (AIMSA) said more than 170 Indian students, mostly from J&K, have been evacuated from Iran so far.
He said a total of 1000-1200 Indian students, including 900 from J&K were stranded in Iran and of them 170 have been evacuated from Armenia and Azerbaijan so far.
He said after the bombing in Tehran, the Indian students were evacuated to Qom by the Indian embassy, where they were provided lodging and boarding facilities.
With the students facing issues in crossing over to Azerbaijan, it is likely that more than 200 students stuck at the border near Astara may be asked to move towards the Armenian border for their evacuation.
Parents have urged the MEA and government to provide clarity on the situation and reschedule tickets that have gone unused.
“The immediate priority should be to move students from Iran either into Azerbaijan or Armenia, where they would at least be out of danger,” Asifa said.
With uncertainty looming and communication gaps persisting, distressed families pray that their wards return safely to their homes and are banking on government efforts for their safe evacuation.