BHOPAL: Two medical students from Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone district, who are presently stranded in coronavirus-hit Siyan city of China, have appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come to their rescue by bringing them back to their families in India as soon as possible.
At a time when the death toll from killer virus has reportedly touched 170 in China, the two students from Khargone district, identified as Shubham Gupta and Abdul Matin Khan, through a video message to their kin appealed to the PM on Thursday to rescue them, as they are presently confined to their hostel rooms.
The duo who are enrolled at the Hubei University of Medicine since last two years in Hubei province – which is at the epicenter of the deadly killer virus’ onslaught – told local journalists via video message that they have been confined to hostel room, to prevent possibility of them also getting infected by corona virus.
“Entire markets are closed and all modes of transport are non-functional, forcing them to spend lives in hostel room while wearing masks. While being in masks, we’re also talking to each other in the same hostel over cell-phones. We’re being provided preserved food by the college authorities, but are not sure about the purity of the water,” the duo told journalists in Madhya Pradesh via video message.
Parents of the two students informed that their sons have told them that the number of coronavirus infected patients reported at the hospital attached to their medical varsity has doubled from 40 to 80 in the last two days, which has compelled them to contact the Indian Embassy in China to rescue them home.
“Both Shubham and Abdul have told us that French, Australian and US students at the college have already been recalled by their nations and hopes that Indian embassy will facilitating their return to India soon. They have told us that there are around 150 Indian students enrolled in the Hubei University of Medicine. Situation in Siyan city in Hubei province is akin to indefinite curfew,” said Shubham Gupta’s father Santosh Gupta in Khargone district of MP on Thursday.
Importantly, another medical student Huma Khan who too hails from the same Madhya Pradesh district had come home on a month-long vacation on January 12. She has been asked by the authorities at Hubei University of Medicine to cancel her February 10 return ticket to China in view of the situation there.
Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh Higher Education minister Jeetu Patwari said that Chief Minister Kamal Nath will talk to Prime Minster Narendra Modi and also the Minister of External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar soon to ensure safe return of the medical students stranded in China.
Also, in a related development, the central government has reportedly reached out to over 600 Indians living in China’s Hubei province, which is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. India has already approached Chinese authorities to allow it to send two flights to Wuhan (the capital of Hubei) to bring back the Indian nationals from the province.