Karnataka government on Wednesday said that it is coordinating with the center to ensure the safe return of Kannadigas stranded in Italy, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Europe, deputy Chief Minister CN Aswath Narayan informed the legislative assembly on Tuesday.
Saving Indians
As we all know, Italy is going under worse time as it is currently in lockdown fighting Coronavirus outbreak. Meanwhile, India has also forced harsh restrictions on the entry of people from abroad, including Indian nationals.
According to the report published by The Times of India, Narayan informed that 1,000 Indians including 400 from Karnataka, were stranded at Milan and Rome airports. “They were coming back to India from Italy, but their flights got canceled. No airlines are ready to fly them to India,” he said.
Airlifting Kannadigas
In the total list of Indians caught in Italy, about 150 in the group of 400 Kannadigas are students. “Arrangements are being made with the help of the central government. The process of health check-up has been completed at Milan airport, and blood samples of those at Rome airport are being collected. Those who test positive will be isolated and others will be airlifted soon,” said Narayan.
It was Congress leader Priyank Kharge who raised the issue of people from Karnataka in Italy on Tuesday. Kharge said the process to bring back Indians should be fast-tracked. “Especially students, who don’t have sufficient money on hand,” Kharge said.
Meanwhile, Minister Anand Singh made a related appeal, saying his daughter was among 90 students waiting to be flown back to India from Rome airport. “I spoke to her last night (Monday), but have been unable to contact her again,” he said.
