The Ministry of Civil Aviation has lifted the restrictions on the number of flights that can be operated between India and Ukraine under the bilateral air bubble agreement, but Indian students in the east European country are split on whether or not to leave amid Russia-Ukraine tensions.
While Russia announced a partial withdrawal of troops from the annexed Crimea region, the US claims that up to 7000 additional Russian troops have arrived at the border in recent days.
“Even though I am staying at the opposite end of the Russian border, the situation is not normal here. I talked to teachers and locals, who have been panicking and stocking on groceries in case of a war. Our universities have started maintaining bunkers,” claimed Saad Ansari, a medical student from Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University who said that as the university has mandated in-person classes, any absence can force them to shell out Rs.500 to clear the same.
“I think 80% of students will come back to India if the situation permits,” claimed Ansari who also added that his university participated in the Unity Day organized by their Vice-Chancellor.
“Our flight tickets range from Rs. 78k to 1L, which is unaffordable for us students who don’t even buy water to drink and instead rely on purifiers to save money as they cost Rs.3 per litre,” said Ghanshyam Yadav from Mumbai who is a student in Ukraine.
Ghanshyam, who has the same concerns about his absence from classes, said that as vivas and practicals are conducted almost every week by the college, the idea of leaving Ukraine is scary.
“The University is not granting us leave as they claim the situation is under control and we are constantly in touch with the Embassy to know of any updates on our continued presence in the country,” said Firoz Ahmed, a student from Odesa National Medical University.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said India does not have any immediate plan to evacuate its citizens from Ukraine and its focus has been on ensuring their safety rather than on anything “larger”.