India says missions helped 140,000 citizens return during US-Iran war

India's government says its diplomatic missions helped about 140,000 Indian nationals return home during the US-Iran war. The statement was given in parliament on Friday by Union Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh. It said embassies and consulates coordinated transit visas, accommodation, transport and cross-border travel to move stranded citizens out of affected areas in West Asia.

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According to the written reply, the largest share of returns was routed through Qatar, where 100,000 Indian nationals were assisted after the partial reopening of airspace. The government said 30,000 people were helped through Kuwait, with Indian missions arranging Saudi transit visas and non-scheduled flight operations. It added that 3,225 nationals were assisted through Iraq, 3,008 through Armenia and 2,500 through Bahrain.

The figures point to a large-scale consular operation spanning several countries and transport routes. The government said it used a structured, multi-layered mechanism to monitor emerging situations and issue advisories to Indian nationals abroad. It also said it maintained contact through email, multilingual 24-hour emergency numbers, social media, toll-free helplines and WhatsApp numbers.

The response matters because the war disrupted movement across a wide part of West Asia and forced governments to rely on diplomatic channels to move citizens safely. India has a large overseas workforce in the region, making airspace closures, transit restrictions and border changes a direct concern for families and employers at home. The scale of the operation also shows how quickly consular systems can become central to crisis management when regional conflict affects civilian mobility.

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Singh said Indian missions stayed in regular contact with community groups to share updates quickly. He added that 24-hour control rooms were set up in India and abroad during evacuation operations to provide information, assistance and support to stranded nationals and their families. The government also said it is conducting final trials of a digital emergency response solution intended to support evacuation efforts.

What remains unclear from the statement is the full timeline of the returns and how many people may still be affected by the conflict. The government did not give a breakdown of how many citizens were evacuated by air, road or other means beyond the country-by-country figures. The next developments to watch are whether officials provide more detail on the digital response system and whether further advisories are issued if conditions in the region change again.

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