Kiev/New Delhi: The Indian embassy in Ukraine announced on Thursday that they are making alternative arrangements for evacuation of stranded nationals.
The Ministry of External Affairs is in touch with all the neighbouring countries surrounding Ukraine to even evacuate Indian citizens. Many citizens who were to fly back to India were left stranded at the airport after closure of Ukrainian airspace following Russia’s Vladimir Putin’s announcement of a military operation in Ukraine.
The embassy has also issued helpline numbers and asked its citizens stranded in Ukraine to reach out to the embassy for evacuation.
“Please carry your passports and necessary documents on your person at all times. You are advised to follow Embassy website and social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) posts for updates on this regard.”
Embassy issued helpline numbers which are +38 0997300483, +38 0997300428, +38 0933980327, +38 0635917881 and +38 0935046170.
India started planes to evacuate citizens living in Ukraine since the war like situation emerged. A special flight landed in Delhi earlier, carrying 182 Indians.
But when an Air India flight scheduled to evacuate on Thursday it was forced to return to Delhi early morning after the eastern European country closed its airspace.
Over 20,000 Indian citizens, mostly students, were in Ukraine as the crisis with Russia escalated rapidly over the past week.
Now, the Indian government’s immediate priority is to evacuate these people but the closure of Ukrainian airspace makes this a challenging proposition.
India had told the Security Council: “The situation is in danger of spiralling into a major crisis. If not handled carefully, it may undermine security.”
Stay calm and face the situation with fortitude
Indian Ambassador to Ukraine said the situation is highly tense and very uncertain and this of course is causing a lot of anxiety.
Partha Satpathy, Indian Ambassador to Ukraine, said: “I am reaching out to you from Kiev. Today early morning, we all woke up with the news that Ukraine is under attack.”
The air space is closed, railway schedules are in a flux and roads are crammed, he said requesting everyone to stay calm and face the situation with fortitude.
The Embassy continues to remain open and operate in Kiev, Satpathy said.
He urged Indian nationals to please stay wherever they are, in their familiar locations. “Those who are in transit, please return to your familiar places of habitation. Those who are stranded here in Kiev, please get in touch with your friends and colleagues in Kiev, universities and other community members, so that you can temporarily lodge there,” he said.
The Ambassador said: “We have already reached out to the Indian Diaspora and have requested them to assist to the best of our abilities.”
He said that he is inundated with calls, so is the Embassy and they are doing their best to help.
“If there is a critical emergency, contact us on the emergency lines provided. Please follow our social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Website) for any updates that we will be putting out,” he stated.
As of now, Indian government are seized of the situation and working on a mission mode to find a solution to this difficult situation, he added.
More personnel to be deputed to Embassy
Union Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan said more officials are being deputed to the Indian Embassy in Ukraine.
“More helplines have been opened at our Embassy there. Safety of Indians is our prime concern and we are working out various plans and programmes to ensure support to our people. We wish to say to all that there need be no reason for panic as India has experience in evacuation as we did in Iraq,” said Muraleedharan to the media.
“I have spoken to Kerala students who are in Ukraine and they have said while there are issues in the Eastern part of Ukraine, on the Western side things are normal. The Indian Embassy there will interact through social media also and not just rely on telephone lines. The Delhi control room has also been beefed up. I will reach Delhi, later in the day,” added Muraleedharan.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has dashed off a letter to the Centre demanding immediate intervention as there are 2,320 students in Ukraine from Kerala.
Air India flight fly back when air-space opens again: Scindia
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, meawhile, said an Air India flight which took off from Delhi to bring back Indian citizens from Ukraine has returned mid-air after the “things escalated” there, adding that, flights from India to Ukraine will again fly, once the air-space of the concerned country opens up.
“Flights were flown for Ukraine earlier. Today also flights were flown to Ukraine but after 3 hours when things started escalating those flights came back. Whenever the air-space will open, we’ll fly the flights again,” said Scindia.
“We have been told that the airspace is complete as notice to airmen (NOTAM) has been issued,” he added.
The Union Minister assured that the Indian government is committed to the safety and security of Indians in Ukraine.
“On the matter of Indians in Ukraine, I held a discussion with the Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar. We are keeping an eye on the entire situation,” he said.
“Air India flight AI1947 is coming back to Delhi due to NOTAM at, Kyiv, Ukraine,” Air India informed.
Notice to airmen (NOTAM), is a notice filed with an aviation authority to alert aircraft pilots of potential hazards along a flight route or at a location that could affect the flight.
‘Our lives in danger, evacuate us’
Indian students stranded in Ukraine are making appeals to be evacuated, if not to the homeland, then to any country which is safe.
Several Indian students are studying at Vinnytsia National Pirogov Medical University, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Dnipro State Medical University, Chernivtsi National University in Ukraine.
Most of the students were scheduled to return to India this week but due to the unavailability of flights, they could not be evacuated.
Aryan, a student of Vinnytsia National Pirogov Medical University, told IANS: “Tension has escalated in many areas in Ukraine. Explosions can be heard at a distance. Many students have left their homes and hostels and are staying in a group.”
Aryan said many of his friends reached the airport to fly back to India but due to unavailability of flights, they have to wait for hours, while many of them are stranded at railway stations.
Kiran, an MBBS student said: “Many students were going to Kiev by train to board a flight. In the meantime, they got the information that flights have been cancelled due to which they got worried. First flights, and then train movement was also stopped. Train was stopped 15 km away from Kiev.”
After standing for hours in train, when the students reached the railway station, there was no taxi or other vehicle available.
Upto 5,000 Indians in one university
Ankit, an MBBS student said, right now, he is staying with six Indian students which includes two girls.
As per the students, initially, only few areas of Ukraine were tensed. Ternopil, where Indian students stay, was peaceful till Wednesday night but now explosions could be heard here as well, the students said.
Another Indian student Sandy said situation is grim in Ternopil now. People staying here are leaving in groups in search of a safe place, but most of them are confined to their homes.
Around 4,000-5,000 Indian students study at Kharkiv National University.
Ankit said that he has spoken to Embassy officials who have assured him that efforts are being made to evacuate the stranded Indian nationals.
Ankit said: “Situation here has turned tense. People have made a beeline at medical and grocery stores. Shops are mostly shut. So, it is necessary to evacuate students on time. Students here are worried about their safety.”
