More than meets the eye in latest attacks

A SERIES of attacks on Indian students in Australia over the past 18 months has strained ties between India and Australia and affected the latter's lucrative foreign student market.

Australian police have acknowledged a jump in the number of attacks against Indians in Victoria state but say they are not all racially motivated.

Anger over the attacks spilled over into street protests in Sydney and Melbourne in 2009. Indian media have also slammed Australia, reported Reuters.

Yesterday, Australian authorities said the latest two attacks were not linked to racism.

Police said that in the first case, the man who claimed he was burned by racists was actually involved in an insurance scam.

He was trying burn his car when he got injured and then claimed he was attacked to cover himself.

In the other case, police said Mr Ranjodh Singh's killers were Indian nationals themselves and have charged two people with his murder.

Around 4,000 Indian students have cancelled plans to study in Australia after the attacks. The foreign student market is Australia's third-largest export earner, worth A$13 billion ($16b) in 2007-08.

Australian politicians and diplomats called yesterday for more balanced reporting by Indian media, saying reports of racist attacks had "done serious damage to Australia's image in India".

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This article was first published in The New Paper.