Safety of Students in Oz Is A Concern, Not Hysteria: Krishna

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna has asked Indian students to choose their courses with care before they travel to Australia.

“The kind of courses for which are students are going for (in Australia) are certainly not encouraging,” said Krishna.

“None of us need to be hysterical, but all that we expect is that Indians, whether they are students or otherwise, are safe in countries where they go,” he said.

The minister’s remarks are seen as a response to Australian acting Foreign Minister Simon Crean’s statement that Indian leaders must ‘avoid hysteria’ about the safety of Indian students.

“Even over the Christmas period there has been a spate of stabbings. This unfortunately is a violent threat and a violent tendency that has emerged. It so happens that one of the victims is Indian. There have been other victims. Australia and Melbourne is not the only city in the world in which this happens. It also happens in Delhi, it happens in Mumbai, and it is the responsibility of all law enforcement authorities to get on top of those issues,” Crean had said.

Last year, nearly 1,15,000 Indians studies in Australia but attacks on members of the community have created apprehensions that the country may not be a safe education destination.