India asks Russia, Ukraine for safe passage for students: Shringla

Story by ATV | Posted by Aasha Khosa | Date 01-03-2022

Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

New Delhi

India is negotiating with both Russia and Ukraine to make them agree to give a safe passage to the Indian students stranded in Kharkiv, the eastern part of the war-hit Ukraine, out of the country.

Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla told media persons in a briefing that evacuation of students from Kharkiv, where an Indian fourth-year medical student was killed in shelling on Tuesday.

He said the conflict in Ukraine was intensifying and the Indian interlocutors were waiting for a window of opportunity to rescue all Indians safely.

Briefing the media after Prime Minister held a high-level meeting in the wake of the death of an Indian student Naveen from Karnataka, Shringla said the team on Kharkiv side had made all arrangements for logistics and would get cracking the moment Russia and Ukraine gave a green signal for students evacuation.

He said there were no attempts by Ukraine's border guards to block the Indians from leaving Ukraine and it was only a logistical problem. He said in a war-like situation the border guards were dealing with long queues of vehicles and amidst the confusion.

On the death of the Indian student in Kharkiv, Shringla said his body has been kept in the morgue of the Kharkiv National medical university where Naveen was a fourth-year student. He said every effort will be made to bring his body back to India for final rites.

He said it is not a normal situation in Ukraine. The Indian teams stationed in different countries are working to make “the best of the situation.”

Shringla said so far 100 students have managed to leave Kharkiv before the Russians intensified the assault on the city. The Indian students have been advised to stay in shelters and not venture out.

Explaining the situation, Shringla said so far 5 lakh people have left Ukraine since February 24 via borders. This also includes 7000 Indian students. “It’s not a small number,” he said.

India will run 26 flights under operation Ganga in the next three days for evacuating the stranded Indian students from Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and Moldova. He said so far 4000 students were waiting in these countries for their flights.

Asked if India would take a strong position toward Russia in the UN in the light of the death of the Indian student in the shelling by its troops, Shringla said “Ever position in the UN that we take is based on careful consideration of the issue.” He said in the coming three resolutions on the Russia-Ukraine conflict are coming for consideration in the UN and India would continue to take the same line.