Kol prof on 1K-km road trip to escape war-ravaged Tehran
Times of India | 18 June 2025
1234 Kolkata: As Israel asked nearly 3,30,000 people to evacuate central Tehran following the escalation of conflict since Monday, Falguni Dey, a Kolkata-based geography professor who was stranded in the capital city, embarked on a dangerous journey from Tehran to Iran's border in a bid to escape the missile attacks. In the next 24 hours, Dey will try to cover a 1,000km stretch from Tehran to Astara, an area near the Iran-Azerbaijan border.Desperate to flee Tehran, Dey had spoken to a travel agent on Monday evening. "I don't have much cash left with me and banks are closed. I cannot stay here any longer. I had to leave the city," Dey said. By Monday evening, he left the city in a car and headed towards Astara. Meanwhile, an advisory came from the Indian govt advising "all Indian nationals who can move out of Tehran using their own resources" to relocate to a safe location outside the city."I know the risks involved in this journey. I don't know which area Israel is going to target next. But I have to take the chance to escape," he told TOI over phone. The roads leading to Astara have multiple checkpoints, and hundreds are trying to take the route to escape Tehran. Dey spent the night at a mosque on the road and started towards the Azerbaijan border in the morning.Traffic congestion and fuel shortage are making the journey even more difficult. "I moved out of Tehran last night by road and am on my way to the Azerbaijan land border. Due to high security and fuel restrictions, there will be several halts," he said.Astara is located inside the Gilan province on the northwest side of the country. The roads leading to the province started turning deadly after explosions were heard across Tehran. Dey will have to travel nearly 370 km from Tehran to reach Shanderman near Caspian Sea and move towards Astara from there. Dey is likely to take detours to avoid any possible missile strike.However, challenges will not be over for him as he is yet to get permission from the Azerbaijan authorities to cross the Astara border and enter the neighbouring country. Azerbaijan shut its land border in 2020 following the Covid outbreak and kept them closed ever since. But it opened the borders temporarily to help the evacuees. "Permissions are also required from the Indian embassy and the external affairs ministry. I am in touch with the embassy in Tehran and they are trying their best. But hundreds of Indians are trying to escape Iran and they have to cater to each one of them," he added.