State students stuck in Ukraine cry out for help
MUSSOORIE: Around seven students from Uttarakhand caught in the Russia-Ukraine conflict at Odesa, a port city in Ukraine, claimed to living on packets of biscuits, fearing the situation could worsen soon as ATMs are closed in the area, according to their parents and relatives with whom they talked over the phone.
While four to five students from Uttarakhand stuck in Danylohalytsky Lviv National Medical University said that they were sleeping in the basement of the hostel and run for cover whenever the airstrike siren is blown.
The seven MBBS students from the Jaunpur block of Tehri Garhwal district are stuck at Odesa University. Ajay Singh is in the third semester while his brother Vijay Singh is in the final semester.
Ajay Singh was able to return home on February 21 , but his brother Vijay Singh is still stuck in Odessa.
Vijay Singh talking to his parents apprised them about the situation and said, “The Indian government has made arrangements for the students from Romania to get back home but there is no arrangement of transport from Odesa to Romania and as the distance from Odessa to Romania is of more than eight hours it is difficult for us to reach Romania.”
“Bank ATMs are closed, and we are running out of cash that is being spent on food which has become costly here”, said Vijay Singh.
Eight other students with Vijay Singh are staying in one room and hoping that they will reach home soon if the government help comes in time.
Vijay Singh’s uncle Yogesh Singh said, “We have not talked about the incident to his mother yet and are praying to God for his safe homecoming with a demand from a government to find some alternative so that they get a safe passage to home, soon.”
However, Suryansh Bisht, a student from Dehradun who was stuck in Lviv, said that he has finally boarded the train and is on his way to the Romania border.
“I along with a group of 7 to 10 students have boarded the train and reached near Romania
border and as there is a jam situation here it is taking time to cross the border but am hopeful that will reach cross over soon,” said Suryansh.
Being critical of several students who were creating panic, he said, “The food is available at the grocery stores currently, and the students who are not following the advisory released by the embassy, to stay where they are and trying to head towards Polish border are at great risk and should not create panic,” added Suryansh.
Meanwhile, the disaster management centre at Dehradun has so far received nine calls from the parents of the students stuck in Ukraine.
“We have collected the details forwarded them to the government for further action” said Vivek (goes by his first name) the officer managing the calls at the disaster management centre Dehradun on emergency number 0135-2726066.
Meanwhile, chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, while sharing the photos of three Uttarakhand students who were evacuated from Ukraine on his Facebook page, said, “Today, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and under the evacuation operation being run by the Ministry of External Affairs, three students of Uttarakhand -- Ashutosh Pal, Adnan Khan and Khushi Singh- have returned safely to India from Ukraine. I am constantly in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs and trying to bring back the rest of the stranded people of Uttarakhand”.