Stranded in Sri Lanka, Maharashtra residents seek help from PMO, CM
Even as they are waiting for the central government to respond, the stranded tourists and seafarers, some of them from Maharashtra have urged Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to intervene.
Written by Manoj Dattatrye More | Pune | Updated: April 16, 2020 4:30:06 pm
Maharashtra residents have urged the Indian government to evacuate them from Sri Lanka.
Over 30 tourists and seafarers from Maharashtra, including Mumbai, Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, along with dozens of other Indians, have been stranded in Sri Lanka since the nationwide lockdown was imposed and international flights were halted by the central government. All their efforts to go back, by seeking help from the Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian Embassy in Sri Lanka, have failed to yield any results.
Some of them, who are from Maharashtra, have urged Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to intervene.
"We are a group of nearly 80 Indians stranded here in Sri Lanka. At least 25-30 are from Maharashtra. We are stuck here since March 22. Many of us had our flights before March 22, which got cancelled due to other reasons. Many of us had booked return flights on April 1. We are here on tourist visas and just like tourists. we had come here with a finite budget. But with the lockdown extending, the chances of us getting back to India seem low. We are also running out of money," said Mahesh Basudkar, a resident of Pimpri-Chinchwad, who went to Colombo on a tourist visa.
Young adults to ring in 2021 with hope, gratitude
Restaurants and bars to shut shop by 10.45 pm on NY eve
Pune-based engineering company loses €56,000 in cyber attack
Pune police nodal officer to assist Forest Dept in animal rescue efforts
Retired principal of engineering college dies after falling from 3rd floor
Trapped in sewage drain, barn owl rescued by forest department
Basudekar said "it is becoming difficult to survive" as a strict curfew has been placed in many parts of Lanka. "Even the hotels are working with reduced manpower and food," he said.
Urging the Ministry of External Affair to take take cognisance of "the grave situation," Basudekar said, "We are all desperately waiting for some relief from the Indian government. We expect them to arrange for flights to bring Indians back home."
Nitin Tandel, a resident of Thane, said, "We had approached the Indian Embassy in Sri Lanka, but officials said they were helpless. We have tweeted to the Prime Minister's Office and the External Affairs Minister to rescue us, but so far there has been no response from them. We all are in a desperate situation, we want to go back home. We hope the Indian government will initiate some urgent steps in this regard," he said.
Sandeep Nalawade, a resident of Saki Naka in Mumbai, said, "There are nearly 30 seafarers in this group… I came to Negombo on March 5. The hotel I am staying here has not reduced it's tariff… As the lockdown has been extended, it's becoming difficult to bear the expenses day by day. I have been surviving on noodles, and rationing even that as other food is not easily available. Our families are worried… many of us have elderly parents at home and they are alone. We are all under tremendous mental pressure".
Even as they are waiting for the central government to respond, the stranded tourists and seafarers have urged the Maharashtra government to rescue them. "We have also sent out appeals to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, as well as BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis… to rescue us from this difficult situation," said Basudkar.
For all the latest Pune News, download Indian Express App.
Uddhav Thackeray
Chennai Hyderabad Live Updates: Active cases in Tamil Nadu falls below 600057 mins ago
TechnologyRIP Hike Stickerchat, the Made-in-India messaging app founded by Bharti Scion
Kerala Win Win Lottery W-599 Today Results: First prize is worth Rs 75 Lakh!
Harry and Meghan 'heartbroken' over tension within the family
Railways is hiring apprentice for 374 posts, 10th pass can apply
Oppo Reno Pro 5G with MediaTek flagship chip launched for Rs 35,999
Rishabh Pant sings 'Spiderman, Spiderman' song, video leaves netizens in splits
Leave WhatsApp, it's voluntary: Delhi HC tells petitioner challenging new privacy policy
Gabba Test, Day 4: India dismiss Australia for 294, need 328 to win
Manoj Dattatrye More... read more
Hutatma Din: Marathi-speaking people in Belgaum fail to get an audience with Home Minister
57% vaccination in Pimpri-Chinchwad
Sena, NCP back Munde, dismiss resignation call