Russia-Ukraine War: Barring 2, all Chandigarh students back from war-hit Ukraine

Tribune News Service

Naina Mishra

Chandigarh, March 8

As many as 56 students of the 58 have made their way to Chandigarh from the war-torn Ukraine. According to the UT Administration, only two students are yet to return.

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

56 of 58 home: UT

We are in touch with students and their families here. As many as 56 of the 58 students of Chandigarh have returned. We are coordinating with the MEA regarding getting back the remaining residents as well. Vinay Pratap Singh, UT DC

Dharam Pal, UT Adviser, said, “We are in close coordination with Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Chandigarh students stranded in Ukraine. The ministry informs us about students who land at the Delhi airport and we arrange transportation for such students from Delhi to Chandigarh.”

Malika Kohli, a resident of Sector 22, whose daughter was studying at Lviv Medical University, said, “My daughter returned on Friday from Lviv. The main hurdle was crossing the border from Ukraine as it was too risky. A group of students, including my daughter, had to hire a private taxi to the Slovakia border. She was recieved by Embassy officials at the border only. Students have braved all challenges on their own.”

Vinay Pratap Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Chandigarh, said, “We are in touch with students and their families here. As many as 56 of the 58 students of Chandigarh have returned. We are coordinating with the MEA regarding getting back the remaining residents as well. Only two students are left. We are in touch with both students. No distress has been reported from their end.”

Earlier, Chandigarh was conveyed by the MEA that there were 103 students stranded in Ukraine. However, later it came to light that 58 students were from Chandigarh and the remaining were from Punjab.

Nitika Mehta, a final-year MBBS student at Kharkiv National Medical University, who returned last Friday, said, “On February 24, we woke up to sounds of bombings and shaking of windows. For four days, we stayed inside the metro station of Oleksiivska for safety. We could see air strikes, missiles, bombs from our flat buildings. The most challenging decision was when we decided to leave Kharkiv amid continuous air strikes, tanks and bombs. Only two months were left to get a degree and we were forced to leave Ukraine. This war has destroyed everything for us.”

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