Bihar students ‘trapped’ in other states seek help

PATNA: Hundreds of students from Bihar, who are still stranded in other states, are desperate to take the first train or flight back to their native places. They stay in private accommodations and are finding in difficult to arrange for food after running out of money amid the Covid-19 lockdown.
A number of panic-stricken collegians told this newspaper that they were “trapped” as no transportation facility had been provided to them yet.
Begusarai native, Sumit Shaw, is stuck in his college hostel at Selum in Tamil Nadu. The final year engineering student claimed, “My parents are really worried because the number of Covid-19 cases is increasing in the southern states and I am trapped here. I have written numerous e-mails to the authorities in Bihar, but to no avail.”
The railways has started running special trains to take migrant workers, students, pilgrims and tourists back home.
Another engineering student, Moaz Hussain, said at least 64 other Biharis were stranded in Tamil Nadu. “Few days ago, all of us had filled up an online registration form for returning home, but nothing happened. We have refilled it and are waiting for the government to help us,” the 21-year-old added.
18-year-old Asha Kumari, a medical aspirant stuck in Kota, desperately wants to go back to her house in Samastipur. She rued, “I was told to pack my bags twice on May 6 and May 10, but I am still in Kota. It feels like I am trapped because I am not keeping well and do not even have medicines.”
The uncertainty about not returning home “has started affecting the mental health” of NEET aspirant, Saurav Guha, who is also in Kota.
Parents are equally distressed and worried about the safety of their kids stuck in other states. “The chances of my son coming in contact with a large number of people are high because he is stuck in his college hostel. How can I sleep peacefully at night knowing that his safety is at stake?,” asked Siwan resident, Reyazad Hussain.
Samastipur resident, Preeti Mitra, whose son is stranded in Kota, said, “The government should allow us to travel so that we can bring our kids back.”
Meanwhile, state education minister, Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma, pointed out that it was not possible to bring all the students back at once.
“We have to look after everything — from transportation facilities to screening of the returnees. Besides, it is risky because bringing so many people back at the same time may worsen the situation and increase the number of cases,” he said.
The minister urged the students and the parents not to lose calm. “Thousands of students have already returned and we know about those who are stuck. They will be back soon,” he promised.
Transport secretary Sanjay Kumar Agarwal, on the other hand, claimed that almost all students stranded in Kota had returned to their native places in Bihar.
“Altogether 13,473 students from Kota have been brought back. Of these, 1,250 are from Patna, 925 from Nalanda, 750 from West Champaran, 600 each from Darbhanga and Madhubani, 572 from Madhepura and the remaining from other districts,” he said and added, “Two special trains will run from Kota on Sunday and Monday. The first one will reach Siwan while the destination of the other one has not been decided yet.”