Indian students stuck in India amid pandemic ask Georgian gov't to be allowed in the country by regular flights
Indian students urge the Georgian Prime Minister, health and education ministers and the National Centre for Disease Control to review their problem in the coming future and to allow them to return to Georgia by regular flight instead of charter flights. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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Over 2,000 Indian citizens who are students of various universities in Georgia and are present in India due to the pandemic and Covid-19 regulations, have asked the Georgian Prime Minister and other high officials to help them return in the country by regular flights instead of charter flights to continue their studies.
In an official letter to the Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, the Minister of Education and other high officials, student say that they are allowed to enter Georgia only by charter flights, though as charter flights have not been carried out since April, they have to attend their studies remotely.
We [students] live on different territories of India. As our country is too big, it is very difficult for us to travel to a specific city to take a charter flight. Some Georgian universities are asking from Indian students to attend studies in Georgia. Otherwise our student status is at risk”, reads the letter.
Students say that they are not able to fully engage in the educational process and university life, which in the end affects the quality of their education.
- Georgia tightens entry rules for Indian visitors due to pandemic
- 150 Indian students at Batumi State University have student status suspended due to coronavirus restrictions on travel from India
Indian students urge the Georgian Prime Minister, health and education ministers and the National Centre for Disease Control to review their problem in the coming future and to allow them to return to Georgia with regular flight instead of charter flights.
In the mid-April the Tolerance and Diversity Institute of Georgia released a statement regarding restrictions imposed by the government of Georgia for individuals coming from India to Georgia, including students, which sets a 14-day quarantine and allows entry in the country only by charter flight.
The institute reported that the decision could be considered discrimination on the grounds of nationality, citizenship and origin.
From April 15, despite Covid vaccine passports, all Indian visitors entering Georgia will be required to present PCR test results from the proceeding 72 hours. After entering Georgia, individuals coming from India (regardless of their citizenship) will have to undergo mandatory 14-day quarantine, which should be financed by their own budget.
The Delta variant currently accounts for over 80 per cent of Covid-19 cases in Georgia, while almost 100 per cent of infections recorded in Batumi and Tbilisi are Delta Covid-19 variants, said Deputy Director of the National Centre for Disease Control of Georgia (NCDC) Paata Imnadze earlier today.
150 Indian students from the Faculty of Science and Education at Batumi State University in the Georgian Adjara region will have their student status suspended due to coronavirus restrictions on travel from India.
The Tolerance and Diversity Institute of Georgia has released a statement regarding recent restrictions imposed by the government of Georgia for individuals coming from India to Georgia, including students, which sets a 14-day quarantine and allows entry in the country only by charter flight.
Georgian foreign minister Ilia Darchiashvili on Monday discussed prospects for bilateral cooperation with his Indian counterpart Meenakshi Lekhi in a Tbilisi meeting, the foreign ministry said.