Melbourne: Amid a spate of attacks on Indian students here, a top Australian police official on Monday said that in about 80 percent cases of robbery and assaults in Victoria the victims were people of "Indian appearance".
"The case of robbery and assault against people of Indian appearance has increased from 1,082 in 2006-07 to 1,447 in 2007-08 in Victoria," state police commander Trevor Carter said.
About 80 percent of the victims could be Indians, he told a group of visiting Indian journalists.
"We do not keep information about the nationality of the victims. We say victims appear to be of Indian origin. But this figure is much less than the total number of cases," he said.
Victoria has registered about 36,000 criminal cases in 2007-08, Carter said but did not provide the exact number of Indian students attacked in the recent months in the state.
In past three months, over two dozen Indian students have been attacked in various parts of Australia, mainly in the Victorian capital Melbourne.
The attacks on foreign students have been mostly carried out by teenagers with the intent of robbery, he said.
"Most of the attackers are teenagers, between the age group of 15 and 25 years. They belong to various cultural community and financial background. Their main intent is to rob," Carter said.
Authorities in Australia have taken a slew of measures to prevent attacks on foreign students including Indians.
The measures include enhancing the street police operations in sensitive areas, installing CCTVs at various places, increasing security apparatus at railway stations and educating students about safety measures, Carter said.
The police have arrested 87 people in recent times in connection with cases of robbery and assault. But these arrests are not necessarily connected to attack on people of Indian appearance, he said.
Carter said police have started a safe station operation under which security system has been enhanced at the railway stations. The operation was started in June this year.
Police personnel are working with universities and foreign students to increase awareness on safety and security.
"Most of the students work at different place and commute through public transport. We are making them aware about the safety measures," he said.
About 1.6 lakh international students are pursuing higher studies in Victoria including about 45,000 Indians.
Bureau Report
