Indian rifle shooter, husband stuck in Zambia

Vinayak Padmadeo

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 3

A business-cum-pleasure trip for Indian rifle shooter Aayushi Gupta and husband Saksham has turned into a nightmare. The couple, who got married in January, have been stuck in Zambia’s capital Lusaka for over a month with no idea when they could return to India.

The two were scheduled to return from the south African country on March 27, but the Indian government’s decision to bar incoming flights from March 22 threw their plans in disarray.

They have not been able to get any help from the Indian High Commission in Lusaka. After their visas expired on March 27, they applied for a temporary residency permit and moved into a serviced apartment, but with Covid-19 cases rising in Lusaka, they are worried.

“We could not buy the tickets back to India as all flights were booked,” Aayushi, who has represented India at the World University Games and Junior World Cup, told The Tribune.

“Covid-19 cases are rising here, and locals say the numbers are far higher than being revealed. We are taking a big risk when we step out to buy groceries. We are very scared,” the 25-year-old added.

She said countless mails and reminders to the Indian High Commission, Ministry of External Affairs and even Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath – Aayushi represents UP in national competitions – have been in vain.

“They have basically forwarded our email IDs to the High Commission here. So basically, it means nothing as we have been dealing with the High Commission staff for a month and no solution has come our way,” Saksham Gupta, who runs an education consultancy firm, added.

“We came here on a certain budget and are now exhausting our savings. The situation is adding to the anxieties of our families,” Aayushi said.

They said there are only 10 Indians stuck in Lusaka, and suspect that is the reason they are not being heard. “I may be wrong, but I think that is the case as I don’t see any interest among the staff here to help us,” she said. “We are getting desperate to come back. All we need is some hope, a plan… Like reaching a neighbouring country where a larger number of Indians could gather and return on a plane that the authorities could arrange.”