New Delhi: India can consider evacuating Pakistani students from the coronavirus-hit Hubei province ‘if such a situation arises’ and ‘resources are available’, the Ministry of External Affairs said Thursday. However, it clarified that Pakistan has not made any request for it till now.
Hundreds of stranded Pakistani students in the coronavirus-hit Wuhan city have made desperate pleas to the Imran Khan government to evacuate them from China’s worst-affected Hubei province, urging his administration to take a leaf out of India’s book.
Asked about the pleas by the Pakistani students and whether India could help in their evacuation, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, “No such request has been received by us from the government of Pakistan. But if such a situation arises and keeping in mind the resources available, we can look into it.”
However, Kumar did not clarify what would be the specific pre-conditions for considering the request.
India airlifted 654 people, including seven Maldivians and one Bangladeshi, Saturday and Sunday from Wuhan. Watching the Indian students leave, the Pakistani students posted videos on social media asking their government to do the same.
In one of the videos, a Pakistani student while showing the Indians boarding the bus to go to the airport, said while India was evacuating its citizens, the Pakistan government says ‘you live or die we will not evacuate or facilitate your’ their journey home. “Shame on you Pakistan government. Learn from India how it takes care of its people,” the student is heard saying in the video which has gone viral.
Pakistan has more than 28,000 students in China, including 500 in the worst-hit city of Wuhan.
China has praised Pakistan for resuming flights to the country, a day after it received special medical kits from Beijing to detect the deadly virus cases.
Agencies