Srinagar, May 14 (KNO): For Saqib (name changed), a 24-year-old student at Delhi University, the past week had been an emotional storm. As tensions escalated between India & Pakistan and the flights were suspended to and from the Kashmir Valley, his biggest worry was his family back home in Srinagar City.
“I called my mother almost ten times a day,” Saqib told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) as he finally landed at Srinagar International Airport today after a day of resumption of flights. “They kept saying everything was fine, but their voices were cracking. I just wanted to be home and see them fine.”
As the flight suspension occurred following Operation Sindoor, an Indian retaliatory military strike after the deadly April 22 Pahalgam attack, Saqib’s plans were upended. He had to change his plans and travel home before his exams ended and before the Eid break. He was forced to take a break and come to see his loved ones in Kashmir.
“For days, I was checking flight websites nonstop. My bags were packed, but I was stuck in my college hostel, unable to focus on anything,” he said. “I even avoided telling my roommates how worried I was.”
“When airspace is shut, and you listen to news about India-Pakistan tensions, your imagination runs wild. I kept thinking, what if something happens and I can’t even say goodbye?”
On yesterday, May 13, when partial flight operations resumed at Srinagar airport, Saqib quickly booked a ticket on IndiGo. He boarded the first morning flight to Srinagar, on May 14 (today), and returned.
“The moment the plane touched the runway here, I felt like I could breathe again,” he said, his voice cracking as he described his scene to KNO at his home.
Notably, today a total of 11 flights operated, including key services by IndiGo, Air India Express, and SpiceJet, ferrying passengers, officials at the airport told KNO. They said among them were many students like Saqib, who had been stranded outside and were desperate to reunite with loved ones.
Moreover, Haj flights also began today, carrying hundreds of pilgrims to Medina via Delhi in wide-body aircraft arranged by SpiceJet. Airport officials also told KNO more flights are expected over the next few days, with schedules being restored gradually.
“We are in constant touch with airline operators to ensure smooth operations,” the Director Srinagar Airport, Javed Anjum, told KNO. For students like Saqib, the resumption was not just about mobility, but an emotion.
Saqib also shared he came in a hurry, leaving behind his exams and college, because he needed to see with his own eyes that his people are safe—(KNO)