Indian students in Ukraine say they may run out of food
NOIDA: Two days after Russian forces began their invasion of Ukraine, Indian students studying in colleges in Kharkiv, the second largest city in Ukraine (and less than 60km from the Russian border), have started moving to bunkers in college hostels even as they fear they will run out of food and supplies soon.
“Just as the bombing started three days ago, we immediately went to metro stations that are all bunkers. The metro stations are crowded now as everyone in the city has taken refuge there. We needed to come back to our flat after our supply of food got over, which is when we got to know that our flat also has a small bunker. We are staying in this bunker for now... However, we have supplies for just three days after which we will have to move out of the building. We are trying to reach the safety of the hostel, but it’s about 25 minutes’ drive and we have been told that staying indoors is safest for now. We are stuck between staying home safe or stepping out for essential supplies,” said Animesh Mishra, an Indian student who hails from Vivek Vihar in New Delhi. He had booked a flight to India on February but it has been cancelled as Ukraine blocked its airspace, virtually cancelling all flights.
Nearly 16,000 Indian nationals are still in Ukraine, government officials have said. Russian forces have
Many students said that social
Most of the students have started moving to bunkers in their college hostels in Ukraine.
media groups run by the overseas education firms in India, that helped these students secure admission in the first place, have emerged as their most reliable source of information and help.
“We have tried contacting the Indian embassy here but they are giving no updates. They have given very broad instructions that we are anyway following for our safety. There are social media groups of the community here that are managed by our contractors (working for the overseas education firms in India), which is most helpful. They are giving us all updates and telling us what to do when. Students have been reaching out on these groups also to ask for help if they don’t have food or
medicines,” Tushar Verma, a fourth-year medical student stuck in Kharkhiv told HT. His family lives in Ghaziabad.
One of the student contractors said they are in constant touch with Indian embassy officials. “We are constantly in touch with the embassy and are trying to keep the students calm by updating them. We are arranging food packets with snacks and fruits for those not living in hostels. However, problems are escalating as curfew timing has been increased today (Saturday) and we can’t move out of our home after 6pm now,” said Hardeep Singh, a student contractor in Ukraine.
He added that after tensions began, his company chartered flights till March 3 to evacuate students. “There are over 3,000 Indian students in Kharkiv and over 2,500 in Kyiv. About 1,500 students are currently in hostels and we are providing food to them. We have stocks for now but we are running out of resources. The government needs to help Indians on the eastern side because it is dangerous for them to travel by road, so that they can even attempt reaching the western parts of the country,” said Singh.
Meanwhile, the Gautam Budh Nagar administration has formed a helpdesk to coordinate transportation of Ukraine evacuees hailing from Uttar Pradesh. The government has also opened a helpline (9454441081) for citizens and appointed IAS officer Ranvir Prasad, relief commissioner and secretary, revenue department, as the nodal officer to coordinate the initiative.
“Since the flights will land in Delhi, and Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad are closest districts, we have been asked to coordinate the transportation of those returning from Ukraine. Our helpdesk will coordinate between the state government, Ministry of external Affairs and the citizens,” said Suhas LY, district magistrate, Gautam Budh Nagar.
According to the list released by the state, there are at least 19 students from Lucknow, 15 from Agra, five each from Noida and Ghaziabad among the 341 students in two evacuation flights reaching Delhi airport on Sunday.