LUCKNOW In the wake of the ongoing ethnic clashes in Manipur, as many as 62 Uttar Pradesh-based students have been airlifted to New Delhi from the violence-hit north-eastern state. While some of the rescued students were flown to New Delhi on a direct flight from Imphal (the capital of Manipur), the others were brought to the national capital through connecting flights either from Guwahati or Kolkata.
Now, the Yogi Adityanath government is making all possible arrangements to ensure that these students reach their respective districts safely. The remaining students from Uttar Pradesh, stuck in Manipur, will be rescued over the next two days, said officials. On Wednesday, another batch of 11 students will be rescued, according to the office of the relief commissioner of Uttar Pradesh.
As violence broke out in Manipur, 136 students from 47 districts of Uttar Pradesh got stuck there, officials said. Of these, 62 students were rescued till Tuesday. The rescued students, who landed in New Delhi, were taken to the U.P. Bhawan and from there, they will be sent to their respective districts.
Sharing his experience, Sanyog Mishra, a Lucknow resident pursuing BTech in Electronics at IIIT Manipur, said, “I am a first-year student. The U.P. government looked after the students very well. We were provided with free flight tickets and the state government rescued us very efficiently.”
Similarly, Ghazipur-resident Santosh Maurya, a student of the National Sports University in Imphal, reached Delhi with several others on Tuesday evening. He said, “When the tension broke out, we reached out to the U.P. Helpline Desk where we were asked to upload our Aadhar cards. The government then provided us with a flight ticket.”
Another Ghazipur-resident Suneet Yadav, who is also a student at the National Sports University in Imphal, said he considers himself lucky that the state government rescued him. Echoing his opinion, Prayagraj-resident Sai Tejaswani, who reached Delhi on Tuesday at 4.30 pm, said, “I went there for a job and was waiting for an interview call. I was putting up in a rented room. Things got scary after the violence broke out, especially as I was alone. My parents reached out to government officials via Twitter. Thankfully, the U.P. government reached out to me and made all my flight arrangements.”
Gorakhpur-resident Ayush Pandey, who is pursuing BTech at IIIT Manipur in Computer Science, shared a similar story. “I reached out to government officials through the helpline. The CM Office contacted me and noted all my details, including my Aadhaar card credentials. Later, they sent us our flight ticket. We are very grateful to the state government,” said Pandey.
To ensure a well-coordinated rescue operation, UP Relief Commissioner’s office is working in tandem with the officials of Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad. A government official said that tickets are being arranged for the remaining students based on availability. The state is also coordinating with the administrative authorities in Manipur for the students to reach the airport safely.
In a press release, state government officials said that due to the ongoing situation in Manipur, 24×7 helpline number 1070 and WhatsApp number 9454441081 have been issued by the Office of the Relief Commissioner to bring back the students studying in the institutions there.
Among the 136 students stuck in Manipur, 52 students were at IIIT Manipur, 47 at NIT Imphal, 30 at Sports University, two at Medical College, three at Central Agricultural University, and two others at separate institutions.