New Delhi [India], June 25 (ANI): Nepalese nationals thanked the Indian government on Wednesday for evacuating them from conflict-hit Iran under Operation Sindhu.

A special flight carrying 296 Indian nationals and four Nepalese nationals stranded in conflict-hit Iran landed safely in New Delhi on Wednesday, taking the total number of people evacuated under Operation Sindhu to 3,154.

Nepalese national, Gayatri Thapa, expressed her gratitude toward the Indian government, saying that they 'made a lot of arrangements for us and helped us a lot.'

Speaking to ANI, she said, 'I have been in Iran for the last 10 years. The situation in Iran was very bad. It feels good to be back here. The Indian Government made a lot of arrangements for us and helped us a lot.'

Another Nepalese national, Utsav Thapa, who has been studying in Kendra Vidyalaya Sangathan also thanked India for the evacuation.

'I have been in Iran for the last 9 years. I study at the Indian Embassy's Kendra Vidyalaya Sangathan school, and I am happy that I am going back to my country. Thank you, India. The Indian Embassy made arrangements for us,' he said.

Another Nepalese national, Sagal, said, 'I have been in Iran for the last 8 years. We got a call from the Indian Embassy after the situation deteriorated. It feels great to be back. I want to thank the Indian Government and the Indian Embassy.'

Additionally, Syed Zeeshan Haider, an Indian national from Kanpur who was in Iran for studies, said that people in Tehran were very scared due to continuous attacks from Israel.

'I am from Kanpur, and I went to Iran to study. Due to the deteriorating conditions there, the Indian government evacuated us from there. We expect the situation to improve there, so we can complete our studies...People in Tehran were very scared due to the continuous attacks,' he said.

Another Indian national from Gazipur said that the Indian Embassy helped them a lot. 'I am from Gazipur and I went to Iran for studies... Our Embassy helped us a lot in the entire evacuation process. We were taken to Mashhad first and the Embassy was there with us on every step. I am thankful to our country for bringing us back here. I am really happy to be back,' Syed Abbas said.

Operation Sindhu was launched amidst the escalating conflict between Iran and Israel, which had gripped the region for the past couple of weeks before a ceasefire was agreed on Tuesday.

The Indian government has evacuated 3,154 people under Operation Sindhu so far.

Earlier in the day, the Indian Embassy in Iran announced that it will be gradually winding down its evacuation exercise for Indian nationals, initiated after the escalated conflict in the region following Israel's military operations on the Islamic Republic, as a ceasefire deal was made between the two countries on Tuesday.

In a post on X, the Embassy detailed the closure of the contact desk set up for registering new names of Indian nationals for evacuation, while assuring continued monitoring of the security situation.

'Announcement from Embassy of India, Tehran: Since there has been an announcement of ceasefire, the Embassy is gradually winding up the evacuation exercise initiated during the military conflict in Iran. Hence the Embassy has closed the contact desk that was opened to register new names for evacuation. At the same time, Govt. of India is keeping a careful eye on the evolving situation & will reassess its strategy in case there is again a threat to the security of Indian nationals in Iran,' the Embassy stated.

This came after US President Trump, on early Tuesday, announced a ceasefire agreement between the two conflict-gripped nations following Iran's attack on US military bases in Qatar and Iraq in response to the US strikes on its nuclear facilities. (ANI)