BHUBANESWAR: How many students from Odisha are stranded in war-torn Ukraine? Neither the Higher Education department nor the Skill Development and Technical Education department has a definite answer.
In the absence of a unified portal or any mechanism to keep record of students going overseas for education, the government is struggling to get details about the exact number of students required to be rescued.
Officials admit that the government has not been able to come up with a mechanism to keep a track of people travelling abroad either for education or work. A senior official from the Higher Education department said, so far, they have been able to collect information about 1,200 Odisha students being stranded in Ukraine.
It is difficult to get details of the exact number of students in Ukraine as the State does not have a unified portal where students can be registered prior to their overseas travel.
“Although it is not difficult to place such a mechanism, the government so far has not been able to focus on it,” he admitted.
Another officer from the Skill Development department said that they depend on the passport office to get the details in such scenarios but the passport office has its limitations as it cannot give details on Odia students moving abroad from any other parts of the country.
As per the Ministry of External Affairs, 9,600 students from Odisha have travelled abroad for education in the last five years. Academicians suggest that the State along with Centre should come up with a platform where data on the international migration of Odias could be recorded to make repatriation of students and workers smooth during a crisis.