India repatriates 175 stranded Pakistanis via Wagah border

CHANDIGARH: A group of 175 Pakistani nationals, who were stranded in India due to the coronavirus-induced global travel restrictions, returned home via the Wagah Border on Wednesday.

They were stranded in different parts of India for about three months due to the lockdowns and travel restrictions.

Sources said that these Pakistan nationals, who were visiting their relatives in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra, and Chhattisgarh, had been stranded since March 23. As both countries sealed their borders, they could not return back.

"The Pakistani nationals were medically screened at the Integrated Check Post (ICP) by a team of doctors and health workers before they crossed over to their country," said an official.

A Pakistani national said, "I was stuck in India along with my family for the past two months. It feels good to go back to my country. I request my government to repatriate the Indians who are stuck in Pakistan."

"I am from Sialkot in Pakistan. I was stuck here for three months along with my family. After I reach home, I will go to Karatarpur Sahib gurdwara to pay obeisance and pray that this COVID-19 pandemic comes to an end as soon as possible," said another Pakistani citizen.

An elderly couple from Karachi said, "We had come here to meet our relatives in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh and got stuck due to the lockdown. We are now going back home as our children have been desperate to see us."

An Indian national who had come to drop her maternal grandparents said, "They had come to visit me for a few days in February but got stuck due to the lockdown. We had to get their visa extended."

Earlier on May 5, 193 Pakistan citizens, who had stranded in India, had returned to their country through the Attar-Wagah border. The Pakistan High Commission in Delhi oversaw the repatriation of its citizens. On March 29, five Pakistani nationals on medical visas who were stranded in Noida and New Delhi were sent back via the border post.