Operation Ganga: 3,726 Indians will return home today, says Jyotiraditya Scindia

Under Operation Ganga, 3726 Indians will be brought back home today on 8 flights from Bucharest, 2 flights from Suceava, 1 flight from Kosice, 5 flights from Budapest and 3 flights from Rzeszow, he said on Twitter.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is using its C-17 military transport aircraft for this evacuation operation.

India has been evacuating its citizens through special flights from Ukraine’s western neighbours such as Romania, Hungary and Poland as the Ukrainian airspace has been shut since February 24 due to the Russian military offensive.

“With all hands on deck and the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, we will get 3,726 of our people back home today. Jai Hind!” Scindia tweeted.

Meanwhile, India has rejected claims by both Russia and Ukraine that Indian students are being held hostage in the besieged city of Kharkiv, and said it has requested the support of Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking them out from the city and neighbouring areas.

India’s comments came after a statement from Russian President Vladimir Putin’s office claiming that some Indian students were “actually taken hostage” by Ukrainian security forces, who use them as a “human shield” and in every possible way prevent them from leaving for Russian territory.

“We have not received any report of any hostage situation regarding any student. We have requested the support of Ukrainian authorities in arranging special trains for taking out students from Kharkiv and neighbouring areas to the western part of the country,” External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

He said the Indian embassy in Ukraine is in continuous touch with Indian nationals in Ukraine.

“We note that with the cooperation of Ukrainian authorities, many students have left Kharkiv yesterday,” Bagchi said.