Tamils stranded in UK seek state govt’s help to return home

Coimbatore: Around 300 Tamils stranded in the UK have sought the state government’s intervention to facilitate their returning home.
Shyamala Surendran, 34, a Chennai resident, who is doing her PhD in University of Bristol, told TOI over the phone that around 300 Tamils across the UK were desperate to return home but were stuck due to cancellation of flights.
Shyamala, who is part of a WhatsApp group ‘Tamils Stranded in UK’, said on May 14, a group of Tamil people reached Chennai from the UK under the first phase of the Vande Bharat Mission.
“There are no flights to Chennai as cases are raising there. However, the Centre is operating flights to Kochi, Vijayawada, New Delhi and Mumbai and people from these states are returning home. We are ready to travel to other states. We will bear the cost of tickets and undergo mandatory 14-day quarantine. We seek the help of the state government in coordinating with other states and the Centre to facilitate our return,” she said. We have registered online for a flight to Chennai and we urge the Centre to operate a rescue flight to Chennai, she added.
Shyamala said stranded people include both students and working people in various sectors. Some of them are cardiac and diabetic patients who find it difficult to get services in the overcrowded UK hospitals, she said. We are struggling to get basic items and services here as lockdown rules are severe, she added.