Why parents are worried: 20,000 in China, 500 Indian students in epicentre of Coronavirus breakout

China is the second most preferred destination for higher education for Indian students after the USA, which means quite a large number of parents in India are fretting over the Coronavirus. About 20,000 students currently study in different parts of China and about 500 students study in the city of Wuhan which is the epicentre of the outbreak of the virus.

Students from India who choose to go overseas for a medical degree, mostly go to China — which is why most of the Indian students studying in Wuhan are also enrolled in medical universities. Local authorities have warned residents from travelling out of and to Wuhan, which has left many Indian students and their parents back here in India worried. Since the Chinese New Year holidays are just around the corner, some students had travelled back to India but since some have only 10 days off, they had decided not to come as it is only a short vacation. Some had also stayed back to finish work.

One Twitter user took to social media site to share a photo of her niece in China stuck in traffic and pleading for help from the Indian government to bring her niece back home. Others also put up tweets asking for the government to find a way to bring the students back home. 

The Indian Embassy has issued an advisory to the residents in China, "If you feel sick on flight, while traveling back to India: Inform the airlines crew about illness, seek mask from the airline crew, avoid close contact with family members or fellow travelers,” the advisory said. For those who have returned to India in the last few days after the virus initially broke out, the officials have warned that if they fall sick within a span of one month of return from India, they have to report to the nearest health facility.