Indian students studying medicine in Kyrgyzstan’s capital city, Bishkek, find themselves caught in a precarious situation. The recent mob violence unleashed by locals has left them anxious and desperate to return home.
Safety Concerns and Urgent Evacuation
Speaking to Deccan Herald, Gandi Someswara Rao, a fifth-year medical student at Kyrgyz Russian Slavic University (KRSU), expressed gratitude for the university authorities’ prompt response to their SOS calls. However, with just five weeks remaining in the academic year, these students face uncertainty. Locals target them when they venture out, even for grocery shopping. They now urge the university to continue classes online and seek help from Indian authorities for safe passage.
Harrowing Experiences in Kyrgyzstan
The violence began with clashes between locals and Egyptian students on May 13 in Kyrgyzstan. Indian students have faced intimidation, including continuous banging on their doors and waste dumped in front of their apartments. Some have moved out of hostels and taken refuge in university classrooms. A Hyderabad-based student shared, “We are scared to live here. The government should intervene and do something.”
Pleas for Support
These students hope for online or physical exams in September, when the next academic year begins. They believe tensions may have subsided by then. As they yearn for safety and a way back home, their plea echoes: “We want to return to India.”2
