Over 7,500 students of Kota coaching institutes make homeward journey to UP in buses

Over 7,500 students from Uttar Pradesh who are preparing for various competitive examinations in the coaching hub of Kota in Rajasthan have left for their homes in buses sent by the Yogi Adityanath government, officials said on Saturday.

According to conservative estimates, around 8,000 students from various parts of Uttar Pradesh are enrolled in coaching institutes in Kota. But the number has shot up to nearly 10,000 as students from various districts of Uttar Pradesh who are engaged in self studies in Kota without having enrolled for regular classes in any institute have also come out to return to their hometowns.

Some of the students were also accompanied by their parents, officials said. "Nearly 7,500 students have so far left for their respective destinations in Uttar Pradesh till Saturday night in 170 buses and the remaining would be sent on Sunday morning," said Nitesh Sharma, an official of Allen Career Institute, currently involved in the arduous task with the Kota district administration.

Earlier Kota Divisional Commissioner Laxmi Narayan Soni had told PTI that 6,000 plus students from Uttar Pradesh have already left Kota.

A senior Uttar Pradesh government official late on Saturday night said, "So far, over 2,700 students have arrived in Jhansi from Kota in 108 buses."
Asked how he is arranging for his food, Manish said, "Currently we are dependent on local tiffin services. Initially, some children started cooking their own food, as they felt tense after the outbreak of COVID-19."