New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the developments in Ukraine. The two leaders reviewed the situation in Ukraine, especially in Kharkiv where many Indian students are stranded. PM Modi and President Putin discussed about the “safe evacuation” of Indian students stranded in “conflict areas” in Ukraine, news agency ANI reported.
This comes after PM Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on the situation in Ukraine as Russian troops pushed forward Kharkhiv, a city with a population of about 1.5 million, and a strike reportedly hit a hospital in the country’s north. A 40-mile (64-kilometer) convoy of hundreds of Russian tanks and other vehicles advanced slowly the capital of Kyiv, while Russian forces pressed their assault on the strategic southern city of Kherson, according to a report by The Associated Press.
On Tuesday, PM Modi reviewed the progress of evacuation of stranded Indian nationals from Ukraine under ‘Operation Ganga’. Earlier, PM Modi had asked the MEA officials to make proper arrangements in the adjoining border points with Ukraine for the students coming to these countries from the war-hit nation.
Meanwhile, the government has issued a fresh advisory where it asked stranded Indians in Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv immediately. The government confirmed that the advisory has been issued based on information received from Russia.
“The advisory that has just been issued by our Embassy is on the basis of information received from Russia. We would urge all our nationals to leave Kharkiv immediately to safe zones or further westwards using any means available, including on foot and keeping safety in mind,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday said the government was “exploring options” to reach eastern Ukraine for evacuating the Indians stranded there. “We are exploring options to reach eastern Ukraine to assist the evacuation of citizens who are stuck there. We are seeing if our teams can reach there, it’s not easy because the route is not open all the time,” MEA spokesperson Bagchi said in a press briefing.
