In light of the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel, India declared on Wednesday that it was initiating 'Operation Sindhu' to evacuate Indian citizens from Iran. There were reports of several Indian students being hurt in a strike on a medical students' hostel in Tehran's Keshavarz street area, even before India began the evacuation effort. Following some student injuries, Iranian embassy officials in Delhi stated that the Iranian foreign ministry was closely communicating with the Indian mission in Tehran. The first flight carrying 110 Indian Students landed in New Delhi on June 19.
In order to ensure the safety and evacuation of Indian people from Iran, India initiated Operation Sindhu. The Indian Embassy coordinated the safe evacuation of Indian students from Tehran, according to confirmation from the Ministry of External Affairs. The ministry said in an official statement that "Indian students in Tehran have been moved out of the city for safety reasons through arrangements made by the Indian Embassy."
On June 18, at 14:55 IST, the Indian students took a special flight from Zvartnots International Airport in Yerevan, and they landed in New Delhi during the early hours of June 19. A student said, “We are happy as we didn't expect that we would be back, such is the condition there (in Iran)... I hope the war will end soon, as our studies will also be completed, and Iran won't have to suffer too much. I am very thankful to the Indian government for the way they evacuated us; it was smooth. We faced no issues till now. But we have come to know that buses are being arranged for us from here. I think after travelling to 3 countries, we are not ready to travel by bus. I request our CM (of J&K) to facilitate us so that we can meet our parents at the earliest.”
Another student said, “The situation there (Iran) is bad, and people are scared. The (Indian) government literally evacuated us from our doors; we didn't even expect this much. They helped us at every step, no one faced any problem, and we are grateful to the central government for that.”
Another student said, “I am happy that I am back to our country. We didn't see any such thing in Urmia, but in other places across Iran, the situation was bad... The Government of India helped a lot, which is why we are back home.”
Another student said, “I am a final year MBBS student at Urmia University... We saw drones and missiles. We were scared... We are happy to return to India and are very thankful to the government of India, especially the Ministry of External Affairs... Our parents were also worried, but now they are happy.”
Indian officials thanked the governments of Iran and Armenia for their assistance with the evacuation. In an official statement, the MEA said that the Indian Embassy in Iran has been helping many Indians to move from areas affected by the fighting to safer areas of Iran and facilitating their further evacuation using the available options. In addition to advising individuals still in Iran to stay in touch with the Indian Embassy in Tehran and the MEA's 24-hour Control Room in New Delhi, the ministry reaffirmed its dedication to safeguarding Indian nationals overseas.