A youth from Andhra Pradesh is battling for life after a brutal racial attack on a group of four Indians by Austrlian teenagers drawing strong reaction from India which wants an end to such violence.

Shravan Kumar, a 25-year-old student who was attacked with a screwdriver over the weekend along with his three friends is in the Intensive Care Unit of a hospital and doctors are "not very optimistic" about chances of his recovery, said Indian Consul General Anita Nair.

"The doctors at this point of time are not very optimistic about his chances but they are waiting for the situation to be clearer and they say they will be able to give us a better diagnosis in a day or two," she said adding "we are monitoring the situation regularly with the hospital."

In Delhi, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna expressed outrage at the attack on the Indian students in Melbourne and asked Australia to ensure that such incidents do not recur.

"I have been appalled at the attack on our students in Melbourne," Krishna said in a statement while commenting on the assault on four Indian students.

Krishna reminded Australia about its responsibility to ensure the well-being and security of Indian students studying in that country. "We will impress upon the Australian authorities that such attacks should not be permitted," he said.

Australian High Commissioner to India John McCarthy said his government was putting in place adequate measures to prevent attacks on the people of Indian origin in his country.

"The Victorian government is fully seized of the issue. The Foreign Minister spoke to the Premier, that is the Chief Minister of Victoria this afternoon on it and it intends to get this (attack on people of Indian origin) stopped," McCarthy said.

About the problem of Indian students being attacked, Nair, who visited Kumar in the hospital, said Indian officials have been taking up the issue with the Victorian state government on a regular basis.

"There have been regular consultations on what needs to be done to solve the problem. Police have established a reference group to interact with the Indian community to try and increase the awareness of these safety issues," she said.

One of Kumar's pals Siniwas Gandhi, who had a narrow escape during the attack, also said that his friend is in a critical condition.