LDALL AUS 3 LST

"Their contribution is welcome, they're respected, they
ought to feel safe here and the rest of the Australian
community condemns these terrible attacks," Evans said.

He said the attacks were a matter of concern, and the
"government treats it very seriously. There are some idiots
out there who perpetrated terrible attacks on some Indian
students.
"We condemn that absolutely and we want to see it stopped
and we're doing everything in our power to see it stopped."
Nearly 100 cases of attacks on Indians were reported in
Australia in 2009.
The string of attacks has led to an outcry back in India,
with the government warning that if such incidents went
unchecked, it could hurt bilateral ties.
According to official estimates, student visa
applications from Indians have experienced a huge decline,
dropping by 46 per cent last year as compared to the previous
year.
The recent attacks have mostly been on students besides
taxi drivers, many of whom have been thrashed by their
passengers.
Australia has an estimated over one lakh students from
India studying in different institutions in an education
industry worth USD 15 billion. PTI NC
DDC


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