“As the Ukranian air space is closed, alternative land routes have been advised, so that whenever it is possible, Indian stranded in Ukraine, can get out of that country. These four routes are through borders of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. Once they cross over, MEA will make arrangements for their food and lodging as well,” Lekhi told PTI on the sidelines of an event here.
She also said that in parts of Ukraine, where it is not safe to venture out, “we have asked our citizens to stay put wherever they are, as going out is fraught with danger”.
Several Indians, largely students of medicine, from Kyiv to Kharkiv, have been left stranded in Ukraine, after a Russian offensive on February 24 that followed weeks of escalating tensions between Ukraine and Russia. On Monday, Russia had recognised the independence of two separatist regions in the eastern Ukraine — Donetsk and Luhansk.
Parents and family members of stranded students, and many Indian students in Ukraine themselves too, have been uploading videos with emotional appeal made to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Ministry of External Affairs and other authorities to evacuate them.
“Our government stands firmly behind the Indian citizens stranded in Ukraine amid the crisis there, as we have stood by our people in the past too. And, as part of evacuation efforts, our MEA officials are helping those who have reached borders to cross over, with visa and other requirements, after due identification,” Lekhi said.
A large number of Indians have already reached Poland border, till yesterday, the minister added.
From border areas, people need to be taken to airports after due process is done. And, the PMO is constantly watching the overall situation. And, they will be airlifted as and when things get sorted, she said.
Lekhi said, the Indian government has been assessing the situation in Ukraine, and in January, the MEA had “started the process to collect data” on Indian students in the eastern European country, through hotlines and embassy.
By mid-February, MEA started issuing advisories subject to the situation in Ukraine, she said.
On Tuesday, Indian embassy in Kyiv again had asked Indian students to temporarily leave the country amid the rising tensions.
From Kharkiv to Chernivtsi, Indians students and professionals, living in different parts of Ukraine, had started arriving at the Delhi international airport from late Tuesday night onwards, in different flights, and most of the students, PTI had spoken to soon after their arrival, had said they had followed the advisory issued by the Indian Embassy.
Gujarat native Ronak Sherasiya, an MBBS student in Ukraine, was meant to take a morning flight out of Kyiv on Thursday, but instead he had to return to his university in a bus, after his flight was cancelled amid deepening crisis in Ukraine. The sound of “multiple explosions” that he said he had heard while exiting the airport, still sometimes, echo in his head.
The 18-year-old native of Gujarat, a first year student at the Bukovinian State Medical University (BSMU) in Chernivtsi, a beautiful town in western Ukraine, about 500 km from capital Kyiv, had told over phone on Thursday, “I had no idea that in a matter of few hours, the situation in Ukraine will take such a drastic turn”.
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