“They are 1600 Kms away from homes; people are not letting Indian students board the trains,” says parent of a student stuck in Ukraine

The forces of Ukraine are indulged in an intense fight with Russia. Hundreds of Indian students from Punjab are stuck in Ukraine. These students are waiting cluelessly to be rescued from the war-torn country. India has launched Operation Ganga to evacuate stranded students.

But the question is – Are the authorities really able to help them? What is the ground reality?

In True Scoop’s Exclusive talk with families hailing from Punjab, a reality check of the situation can be ascertained as to how the students are getting treated in the warzone. Our team contacted 15 families; they shared their experiences with us.

Pukhraj Singh is a second-year student of MBBS stuck in Kharkiv, Ukraine. His father said, “Pukhraj and his friends are going to nearby towns by foot as no public vehicles are available. Food shortage is a serious issue. Embassies in Ukraine are not responding to any of our messages, rather, district authorities are in touch with us.”

Jasmine Kaur’s father said that students are leaving at their own risk. They are roaming from one place to another in a group. On being asked about how you will manage their further studies, he said, “Ministers are saying that only dumb students go out of the country, but this is not true, on the basis of NEET they were given admission in those universities. We are paying 30-40 lakhs of fees and still listening to all these stupid things.”

Videos of several students are surfacing on the internet. They can be seen pleading to the authorities for help. Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday expressed confidence that every Indian stranded in Ukraine will be brought back home safely as the government is making every effort in that direction.

Yogesh Kumar’s relative, shared, “he is stuck in Kharkiv and embassies are not responding from Ukraine, but DC office calls daily. We wonder what kind of paperwork they are doing, our child can’t come himself until they will go and instead arrange something for them.”

“They are 1600 Kms away from homes; people are not letting Indian students board the trains. Indian students were getting badly treated in Ukraine.” On being asked, “Is the Government asking for any charges to bring them back?” they said, “No, they are bringing them back free of cost, till now, no charges are being asked by them,” said Yogesh’s relative.

Also read: An Indian student stranded in Ukraine lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv