New Delhi: Around 16,000 Indian students are still stuck in Ukraine as Russia shows no intention of halting the onslaught on its neighbour. While New Delhi is pursuing all options on the table, the fact is that in the current situation bringing everyone back is proving to be a major challenge. The students, meanwhile, are following the general population in the country, saving themselves by taking refuge in bunkers and waiting for the situation to diffuse.
Talking to ETV Bharat over the phone, Mohammad Ameen, an MBBS student in Ukraine who hails from Kerala, said that the situation in Kharkiv city in the northeast was "pretty bad". "For the last 48 hours, we have been hiding in bunkers and with each passing minute, our situation is worsening. We are already facing a food crisis here. There is no way we can go outside when a war is going on there," Ameen said.
While the Government of India and the Ministry of External Affairs are actively attempting to bring back Indian students, evacuating those who are stuck in Kharkiv and other eastern areas of the country is going to be a tough nut to crack. India has collaborated with countries including Poland, Hungary and Romania which are situated on the west of Ukraine for safer evacuation of its citizens.
The airspace and road links have been closed. Students near the western border are, however, still managing to leave Ukraine. Students in other parts of Ukraine, far away from these western bordering states are finding it difficult to even move out of the bunkers and underground metro stations.
Also read: Ukraine crisis: Students gripped in fear, hiding in bomb shelters, seek return to safety of homes
"Kharkiv is 16-18 hours away from the Western Border. We have no clue about our safety. There are around 200 Indian students with us in this bunker. We are trapped here," Ameen said. The Indian Embassy in Ukraine has advised those living in the eastern part not to move out of their current locations until further instructions. "We have no idea how we will be evacuated," he added.
Similarly, Amit, a sixth-year medical student in Kharkiv said: "We are hiding inside the bunkers for the last 48 hours. There are around 50-60 Indians with me in this bunker and there are many others who have been trapped in other bunkers. We are in touch with our parents, and they are extremely worried. We don't know how we will be evacuated. We are hearing the news that few of the Indians have been evacuated but they are majorly those who are residing near the western borders."
Air India’s first evacuation flight departed from the Romanian capital Bucharest on Saturday afternoon for Mumbai with 219 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine due to the ongoing Russian military offensive, officials said. The airline’s second evacuation flight departed from Delhi at 11.40 am and is expected to land in Bucharest at around 6.30 pm (Indian Standard Time), they noted.
Indian nationals who reached the Ukraine-Romania border by road have been taken to Bucharest by Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flights, they said. The first evacuation flight AI1944 departed from Bucharest at 1.55 PM (Indian Standard Time) and is expected to land at the Mumbai airport at around 9 PM, they said. The second evacuation flight AI1942 is expected to return to the Delhi airport on early Sunday morning with another 250 Indian nationals, they mentioned.
