Bengaluru: With more than 190,000 Indian expats in UAE registered to return home on repatriation flight, the Indian government will begin the repatriation operation from Thursday, beginning with two flights that will take of from UAE with Indian expats.

Indian government has decided to deploy fleet of charter flights and naval warships, to bring its citizens back to the country amidst the world-wide corona virus scare. The government sources added that the embassies were preparing priority lists ahead of the operation’s launch on May 7.

According to the reports, between May 7-14 about 60 commercial flights will bring back at least 15,000 citizens from 12 countries with distressed Indian citizens including tourists stranded overseas and expat workers who have lost job being its priority.

Apart from the flights, the government has deployed naval warships including INS Magar and INS Shardul which headed towards Maldives and Dubai respectively.

Interestingly, despite follow-ups, meetings and requests made by several Kannadigas NRI organizations in UAE, the government of Karnataka has not finalized if it will send or receive any flights from the gulf.

The state has no flights scheduled to arrive with its citizens from UAE in the first phase of the operation. In a joint statement released by several organizations of Karnataka in UAE, the organizations claimed that there are several Kannadigas stranded in UAE including plight of severely sick patients and over hundred pregnant women and that at least one flight arriving with the Karnataka’s citizen in the first phase was required.

It also condemned that the approach of the state government and added it was reacting carelessly to the matter. It further demanded that the state government should immediately coordinate with the centre and arrange for flights to ply its citizens back to the state at the earliest.

Praveen Shetty, President of KRNI Forum, Mohammad Naveed- President of Anivasi Kanandigaru Dubai, Sunil Ambalavalil- VP of Anivasi Kannadigaru, Dubai, Hidayath Addoor- Vice President of Bearys Chamber of Commerce, BCCI UAE chapter, Harish Sherigar- Patron Sharjah Karnataka Sanga, Chandrashekar Lingadahalli, President Basava Samithi, Imran Khan- President, Karnataka Media Forum, Ronald Martis- Mangalore Christian community in Dubai, Daya Kirodian- Dubai Karnataka Sanga, Noel Almeida -member of various organization including KNRI, Yashwanth Karkera- Tulu Sanga, Ashfaque sada- President of Bhatkal Muslim Jamaat Dubai, Yusuf Bermaver- General Secretary Bhatkal Muslim Jamaat Dubai, Afzal S M- Bhatkal Muslim Jamaat Dubai, Shashidar Nagarajappa- Kannada Patashale Althaf Hussain- Kodava Samaja, Ashraf KM- Businessman, Johnson Martis- Business professional, Siraj Parladka- Blood Helpline Karnataka and Ansar Barkur endorsed the jointly released press statement on Tuesday.

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Mangaluru: The inauguration ceremony of a 40-day free NEET and CET test series was held at the Arkula campus of Shepherds’ Shaheen PU College on March 24 at 2:00 PM, with the participation of several educationists and community representatives.

The test series has been introduced to help students prepare for competitive exams with better conceptual understanding through detailed question discussions.

Ar Mohammed Nissar, Chairman of Shepherds’ International Academy, attended the programme as the chief guest. He explained about the 40-day free NEET and CET test series and spoke about how the training here can help students in cracking two of the most competitive exams in the country.

Moosabba P. Beary, President of MEIF Central Unit D.K., spoke about the importance of setting clear goals while preparing for competitive exams and said consistent effort plays a key role in achieving success.

Mohammed Ibrahim Alake from Addoor Community Centre stressed the need for strong conceptual understanding and regular practice, noting that these are essential for students aiming to perform well in NEET and CET.

Haneef Puttur, Founder of Puttur Community Centre, spoke about the growing competition in entrance exams and highlighted the importance of proper guidance and structured preparation.

Syed Israr Ahmed Junedi, Founder of Community Centre Hassan, said such initiatives help students evaluate their preparation, understand their mistakes, and improve over time.

All the speakers welcomed the introduction of the free 40-day test series and congratulated the organisers, stating that the programme would benefit many students preparing for competitive exams.

The organisers stated that the test series aims to support students in strengthening their concepts and improving their performance in NEET and CET examinations.

S.M. Farooq, Trustee of Shepherds’ International Academy, speaking after the event told Vartha Bharati that a total of 88 students have enrolled for the programme and expressed hope that it will help make it easier for students to crack these exams.

Lubna Banu, Principal of Shepherds’ International Academy; and Dr. Nafisa Shirin, Director of Shepherds’ International Academy, were also present on the occasion. The programme began with a welcome address by Ms. Nilopher Sajid who also conducted the proceedings as the master of ceremonies.