In an effort to build a comprehensive database of Indian students abroad, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has initiated awareness campaigns, asking students to register with the respective embassies and high commissions.
The move comes in the wake of the recent Russia-Ukraine and US-Iran conflicts, when a large number of Indian students reached out to the missions and had to be evacuated to safety.
While over a million Indians are estimated to be studying abroad, the government has no specific database, mostly depending on foreign countries which release their student visa numbers at the end of each year and Indian missions which collate data to arrive at its estimates.
With more and more Indians studying abroad, official sources underlined the need for a detailed database, especially for better planning of rescue and evacuation operations during conflicts.
There is no mandatory requirement for Indian students to register with the government before travelling abroad. In 2015, the MEA had launched the MADAD portal to serve as a consular grievance redressal platform, where Indian students were asked to register voluntarily. But it hasn’t gained much traction — only 41,000 students have registered so far, according to the ministry’s website.
The ministry is now planning to overhaul the portal or launch a new website for Indians going abroad for jobs and education. Besides aiding better planning and coordination during conflicts, sources pointed out that many of these people face other issues as well — local language and culture, local laws, and even documentation. A database would help frame focussed orientation and outreach efforts by the missions, sources said.
According to sources, the awareness campaign is especially focussed on countries where Indian students comprise a large part of the international student population — like the United States, China, Malaysia, Germany and Canada — as well as in upcoming destinations which are emerging as new hubs for cheaper medical education, like Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
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In Georgia, which has an estimated 23,000 Indian nationals — mostly medical students studying in and around Tbilisi — India recently appointed Amit Mishra as its first full-time ambassador. The Indian mission there has started an outreach to educational institutions and student groups to understand the issues they are facing, as also to advise them. “We have held several meetings and sessions with student groups and educational institutions over the past one month,” Mishra told The Indian Express from Tbilisi.
Some students miss deadlines for their visas and other paperwork, there have also been cases of students engaging in petty crimes, leading to their disqualification from universities or action by authorities, he said.
Over the next few months, before the beginning of the next semester in September, we will work to make Indian students understand the need to register with the embassy so that we have an idea of their numbers and other details, and can help them in case of any need, he said.
According to sources, despite the Indian missions issuing advisories from time to time, voluntary registrations are very low, sometimes not even 10 per cent of the actual student strength in a country.
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At the start of the Iran conflict, the Indian embassies issued advisories in both Iran and Israel, urging students to register with them. In Canada, too, where Indian nationals faced hate crimes last year, the Indian high commission there urged its nationals, including students, to register. “This will help the mission and posts remain in close contact with Indian citizens and provide necessary support in case of any emergency or untoward incident,” it had said.