A London Assembly Member for Brent and Harrow has appealed to the UK Foreign Secretary for the repatriation of thousands of British Indians stranded in India amid coronavirus outbreak.
In his letter to Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, Navin Shah wrote,
“My wife Rajeshiri (known as Cllr Rekha Shah) and I arrived here to Mumbai on 8th March to attend my older bother's funeral service and were due to be back. However, we've got caught up with current situation and therefore stranded in Mumbai away from our home and immediate family.
“We like many were booked to fly back to London by Air India on 1st April (after their decision to stop flights to Europe till 31st March). But the Indian Government have now closed international commercial passenger services till April 14th. What do we do? What is the future for the stranded?
“Thousands of Britons are stranded in India who face extremely bleak situation because they have limited/no resources and virtually no support and little advise from British High Commission and Foreign & Commonwealth Office here.”
According to sources, as of 28th March there are about 25,000 British Indians stranded in India with about 300 people in the Kutch district of Gujarat alone.
Navin Shah and his wife Councillor Rekha Shah had visited India to attend a family funeral. However, owing to the coronavirus outbreak, Narendra Modi’s government had sealed all international borders until April 14th which is speculated to be extended considering the spate of incidents across other countries.
As a result those British Indians who are temporarily departed from their children and families in the UK are extremely concerned of their smooth passage back to the UK. Some like Shah have even reported about suffering from other medical conditions (not Covid-19) wherein they are fast running out of their prescribed NHS medicines and therefore, have to rely on local alternatives.
“We recognise British tourists abroad are finding it difficult to return to the UK because of the unprecedented international travel and domestic restrictions that are being introduced around the world – often with very little or no notice.
“The FCO is working around the clock to support British travellers in this situation. Our consular staff are supporting those with urgent need while providing travel advice and support to those still abroad,” noted an FCO spokesperson in a statement to Asian Voice.
Jethalal Savani, a Non-Residential Indian from the UK, also had his return ticket from India to London booked for April 30. Currently at his native Kera village in Kutch district, the 65-year-old man managed to contact the British High Commission in India but concern about other fellow expats fate made him start a campaign.
“Majority of those stranded in Kutch are senior citizens. I have access to the internet and can communicate in English unlike many others. This made me start a two-day campaign to connect all of them.
"Kutch is a remote district, so commuting to Delhi or Mumbai will not be an easy task even when the lockdown is eased. So we are requesting the British High Commission to arrange for a flight from Ahmedabad to London for the evacuation" says Savani.
If any British national in India requires immediate consular assistance, they should contact us on New Delhi: +91 (11) 2419 2100; Goa: +91 832 6636800; Chennai: + 91 (44) 42192151; Mumbai:+91 (22) 6650 2222. British nationals who wish to return urgently to the UK, should email to [email protected]
