100 Indian Students Leave Iran Through Armenia Land Border, Indian Embassy in Tehran Assists

(IRAN, ARMENIA) — Over 30 Indian students at Urmia University of Medical Sciences booked tickets to return home from Iran via the Armenia land border route, as other students watched closely for signs the first group could cross safely.

Nearly all students from the university plan to follow after the first group arrives safely, while Indian students from Qom and other areas monitor the route before committing, amid reports of attacks and blasts near some of their locations.

The Indian Embassy in Tehran has facilitated logistics for students seeking to leave, but it has required that travel proceed at the students’ own risk, with no official evacuation plan in place.

The movement comes as families in India press for government intervention and students weigh whether an overland exit through Armenia can offer a workable path out of Iran.

Students using the Armenia land border route must first book and submit confirmed flight tickets from Armenia, typically to New Delhi, for verification under embassy conditions.

At the Armenia border crossing, students must pay a $10 visa fee at the Zulfa border, according to the requirements shared with students.

The travel plan requires students to build in time. Students were told to plan a 5-7 day buffer between leaving Iran and the Armenia flight to accommodate transit delays.

Those who reach Armenia early must arrange their own accommodation there if their flights are still days away.

The itinerary described to students begins with travel from current locations, including Urmia or Qom, to an embassy-arranged overnight stay in Qom, followed by bus or other transport onward to the border.

The arrangement has drawn close attention from students in several Iranian cities, including those who said they were weighing whether the route could be repeated at scale.

A wider group of Indian students, including many Kashmiri students, has followed developments around the Armenia land border route while waiting to see if the first group can move without incident.

Reports of attacks near student locations have shaped the calculations. Blasts were reported near Isfahan and Qom, places where Indian students have been living and studying.

In Isfahan, 32 medical students relocated to basements after nearby attacks, including at Darvaze-ye Shirazi, according to the information shared by students and families.

Other students moved away from targeted Qom residential areas as the situation around them shifted.

The embassy support described to students has focused on logistics rather than security guarantees, and the embassy has said it bears no responsibility for safety during the journey.

Students and parents have treated that condition as central as they decide whether to travel, given the continuing reports of attacks near some areas where students are based.

The embassy may provide a bus and hotel in Urmia if 40-50 students join, an option that students have discussed as they consider moving in groups rather than as individuals.

That offer has been tied to numbers, with students indicating they would need to coordinate participation before support such as a bus and hotel could be put in place.

Iranian authorities were also reported to be offering safe passage facilitation through Armenia, with Azerbaijan mentioned as an alternative route.

Some students have already been escorted to borders, according to the information circulating among students and their families.

The evolving picture has left many students waiting for confirmation that the first group can complete the crossing and make onward travel from Armenia.

As of March 10, 2026 reports, no updates confirmed the first group’s border crossing or arrival in India.

The absence of confirmation has fed a pattern of cautious decision-making among students in multiple locations who say they intend to move only after they see that the route works in practice.

Students from Qom and other areas have tracked the Armenia land border route as a possible model for broader departures, with those outside Urmia indicating they want to see the first group arrive safely in India.

The All India Medical Students Association (AIMSA) received 18+ distress calls connected to students caught up in the situation.

Moomin Khan, who was cited in connection with AIMSA, noted that students await the first group’s safe India arrival before proceeding.

For many families, the pressure has shifted from watching the news to taking action in public.

Parents in Srinagar protested on March 10, 2026, urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister, J&K LG, and CM to intervene.

The parents said they were willing to fund chartered flights and cited 2025 evacuations as a precedent for action.

The Srinagar protest reflected the scale of concern among families who say they have struggled to get clarity about how students can leave safely, particularly as students reported moving to basements or shifting residences after nearby attacks.

The Armenia land border route has been discussed among families as a path that could allow students to exit Iran even without an official evacuation plan, but parents have also raised questions about the risks of a multi-day overland journey under uncertain security conditions.

The conditions set out for travel through Armenia have required students to make commitments in advance, including securing and submitting confirmed flight tickets from Armenia for verification.

That requirement has meant students must spend money on flights before they know how quickly they can reach Armenia, increasing the stakes of delays or last-minute changes.

The need to plan a 5-7 day buffer has also shaped decisions for students with limited funds or those who fear becoming stranded in Armenia while waiting for a flight.

The $10 visa fee at the Zulfa border has been treated by students as a manageable cost, but it has added another step to the process at a moment when many have sought to minimize complications.

Students have described a step-by-step itinerary that begins with gathering at a point for travel to Qom and an overnight stay arranged through the embassy’s logistics, before continuing by bus or other transport to the border.

That structure has offered some sense of coordination, though students have emphasized that the embassy has required travel at their own risk.

The possibility of embassy support in Urmia, including a bus and hotel, has been tied to whether 40-50 students join, prompting discussions about timing and collective movement.

The plan has been closely watched by Indian students in Iran beyond Urmia University of Medical Sciences, including those in Qom who have expressed interest in seeing whether the route can be used by groups from different cities.

Kashmiri students, who form the majority of stranded students, have been at the center of family concerns and have played a large role in the flow of phone calls and messages about the Armenia land border route.

In Isfahan, the relocation of 32 medical students to basements after nearby attacks has become one of the most cited examples among parents of why they want a safer, faster path home.

The mention of Darvaze-ye Shirazi in accounts shared among families has underscored how closely they have followed where attacks were reported and how near they were to student housing.

Other students in Iran have shifted locations as well, including those who moved from targeted Qom residential areas, reflecting the way insecurity has affected daily life.

The embassy advisory has remained that students should stay in their current safe locations with provided food and shelter, even as some students pursued the Armenia land border route.

That advisory has sat alongside the logistics facilitation offered to students seeking to travel, creating a two-track response in which some students remained in place while others attempted to depart.

Reports that Iranian authorities were offering safe passage facilitation through Armenia, with Azerbaijan as an alternative, have also influenced discussions among students about which route might be viable.

The availability of an Azerbaijan alternative has circulated among students, though the Armenia land border route remained the focus for those who booked flights out of Armenia.

Within student groups, uncertainty about timing has remained a central factor, with the absence of confirmation of the first group’s border crossing or India arrival as of March 10, 2026 reports driving continued hesitation.

Students in Qom and other areas have said they were monitoring whether the first group can complete the journey, viewing that as the clearest signal of whether the process can be repeated.

Families in India have continued to press for more direct government involvement, as reflected in the Srinagar protest on March 10, 2026 and in the offer by parents to fund chartered flights.

The calls received by AIMSA, counted at 18+ distress calls, have added to the pressure on community networks to find answers for students while they wait.

For those trying to leave, the Armenia land border route has required careful planning from the moment they leave their current location, including reaching Qom for the embassy-arranged overnight stay and coordinating onward travel toward Zulfa.

Students have treated the 5-7 day buffer as a practical necessity rather than a suggestion, given the potential for transit delays between Iran and Armenia and the need to match border travel with pre-booked flights.

The requirement to arrange their own accommodation in Armenia if they arrive early has also meant students must plan for expenses and logistics beyond the border crossing itself.

While the first group from Urmia University of Medical Sciences has taken the lead by booking tickets, students elsewhere have continued to watch and wait, with many saying they would decide only after they see that the route delivers safe arrivals in India.