No information of hostage situation involving Indian students in Ukraine: MEA

According to the MEA, the Indian Embassy in Ukraine is in constant contact with Indian people in Ukraine, and no reports of a hostage situation have been received.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the government is not aware of any Indians being held hostage in war-torn Ukraine. “They are facing difficulty due to security reasons, particularly in Kharkiv, but no hostage situation,” MEA representative Arindam Bagchi said.

He stated that 16 flights, including the IAF’s C-17, are planned within the next 24 hours as part of India’s Operation Ganga. In addition, he claims that over 20,000 Indians have fled to the Ukraine border since the government published its advisory. “There are more people, but it’s reassuring to see that these many people have left Ukraine,” he remarked.

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According to the MEA representative, the government is focusing its emphasis on Eastern Ukraine, including Kharkiv and Pisochin. “We have managed to get some buses there. 5 buses already operational, more buses later in the evening; 900-1000 Indians stranded in Pisochin and 700+ in Sumy. We are concerned about Sumy,” he remarked.

He also stated that the administration had sought special trains from Ukrainian officials, but had yet to get a response. “Meanwhile, we are arranging buses.” According to the civil aviation ministry, 17 special flights from Ukraine’s neighboring nations, including 14 civilian aircraft and three C-17 IAF planes, have returned to the country today as part of ‘Operation Ganga.’

Later in the day, another Civilian flight is due to arrive. “While Civilian flights carried 3142 persons, C-17 flights evacuated 630 passengers. So far, over 9364 Indians have been evacuated by 43 special civilian flights,” the ministry stated.

It said that today’s civilian flights comprised four from Bucharest, two from Kosice, four from Budapest, three from Rzeszow, and two from Suceava, while the IAF flew two from Bucharest and one from Budapest.