Key Points

"The assertion that Indian university student applications from specific Indian states are being banned, or restricted, is incorrect," said a spokesperson at the Australian High Commission, New Delhi.

The spokesperson stated that there are over 125,000 Indian students currently studying in Australia - the second-largest cohort of students from any country.

"India and Australia continue to have a very strong relationship in the field of education. Australia deeply values Indian students, and the Australian Government welcomes their contribution to our classrooms and Australian society," the spokesperson said.

Answering a query on reports about student applications from specific Indian states facing restrictions in some Australian institutes, MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said during the weekly press briefing that "visa matters are sovereign matters".

"Whether Australia wants to issue a visa to X or Y, it's their prerogative. So that is how we look at it," he had said.

Recently, Australian opposition leader Peter Dutton has proposed a cut in the number of international students in the country.

He pledged to reduce student intake by 80,000, arguing that the measure would help ease the housing crisis and make home ownership more attainable for young Australians, according to a report by The Australia Today.

"ANNOUNCED: We will cap international student numbers and reduce permanent migration by 25 per cent - freeing up nearly 40,000 homes in the first year," he said on X.

He criticised the current government's migration strategy, stating that the intake of 1.8 million new arrivals over five years was placing pressure on an already strained housing market, particularly in major urban centres. Dutton also noted that since the previous election, international student numbers had increased by 65 per cent--from 5,20,000 to over 8,50,000--coinciding with a 25 per cent rise in median rent across the country.

- ANI