Taliban's decision, to not conduct classes for girl students above sixth grade in high schools in Afghanistan, has worried many Afghan girl students who have taken admissions in various Indian universities and are attending online classes for the same due to not receiving visas from India to travel there for the same.
Sahar Rasa, a student pursuing MBA from the Ganga Institute of Technology and Management, is currently in her 3rd semester and wants the Indian government to renew her visa, which expired on March 9, 2021.
"We are facing more limitations and witnessing the clamping down of our rights on a daily basis. Currently, our classes are online but due to issues with the internet in Afghanistan we constantly face problems," said Sahar who added that her family doesn't have any significant source of income for the time being. "We also don't have any entertainment programmes that can be watched. A national TV channel pronounced as Melle is broadcasted and they rebroadcast archives from years ago," said Sahar who likes to watch series and shows.
Another student, Niza Azizi, who enrolled herself in Ferguson College, Pune University worries about her college turning to offline mode for the last semester. "We can't go to schools, aren't allowed to go work, can't travel alone. Our future is pretty bleak and my only hope is that the Indian government comes to our rescue and issues visas for us," said Niza who added that despite girl students not being allowed to come for protests, they showed courage and will to fight for their rights publicly.
Afghan girl students in India feel safe but lack financial security
Some Afghan girl students who live and study in India say that while they feel much safer to be in the country rather than at home, other troubles haunt them.
"I don't want to go to Afghanistan considering the current situation but I am not able to pay the expenses of my University. I am alone in India and don't live with my family," said Marwa Jaan, a student from Lovely Professional University in Punjab who is pursuing her MA in Political Science. "My mother used to work as a teacher before the Taliban took over the country but she still manages to send me money every now and then. I have also written to the Afghanistan Embassy in India on waving my fees partially or fully," said Marwa, who has also applied for her visa extension.
