Four students, including a girl from Alipurduar, who had been confined to a hotel near the Pasupatinath temple in Kathmandu since the outbreak of violence in the Nepalese capital, returned to India on Friday afternoon.

They crossed the border at Panitanki near Siliguri around 4.15pm and expressed a deep sense of relief upon their return.

Speaking over the phone just after crossing the border, Manihar Talukdar said: “We have reached India by road. We are so relieved now. We contacted the police helpline number for assistance. Initially, we were very tense, but once we saw the army deployed on both sides of the road, we felt safe. Now we are heading towards Siliguri. From there, we will catch a bus or train to reach our homes. We have not eaten anything since morning, but soon, we will take some food and continue our journey.”

The group includes Manihar Talukdar from Barobisha in Alipurduar, Souvik Chakraborty from Dinhata in Cooch Behar, Mayukh Bhattacharjee from Jalpaiguri, and Swapnajit Ghosh from Agartala.

All the four are pursuing higher studies in agriculture. Manihar is a postgraduate student at Central Agriculture University in Nagaland; Souvik is a researcher at Kalyani Agriculture University; Mayukh is engaged in research at Bidhan Chandra Roy Agriculture University and Swapnajit studies in Agartala.

Recalling their ordeal, Manihar said: “On September 8, while returning to our hotel in Kathmandu, we suddenly heard gunshots. We started running and took shelter inside a momo shop, where the shopkeeper quickly pulled the shutters down. A couple of hours later, the hotel manager escorted us back. Since then, we were not allowed to step outside. Prices of food and water soared abruptly, and we also faced a funds crunch.”

The students had gone to Kathmandu to attend the World Congress on Climate Change held at Central College, where they also won a prize. "The four-day seminar was scheduled to conclude on September 9, after which they were supposed to return. However, because of the sudden violence in different parts of Nepal, they were stranded and confined to their hotel," said sources.

Prasenjit Talukdar, father of Manihar, said: “Since the violence broke out in Nepal, we could not sleep, worried about when our daughter and her friends would return safely. Now that they have reached India, we are relieved. By tomorrow, she will be home. We are eagerly waiting for her.”