NEW DELHI: Ahead of the impending fall of Kharkiv, Ukraine‘s second largest city that has been ravaged by Russia’s military offensive, Moscow Wednesday asked India to relocate Indian students holed up in the city. Based on inputs from Russia, the government asked Indian students in 2 successive urgent advisories, citing the deteriorating security situation, to move immediately, and even on foot, to Pesochyn, Babaye and Bezliudivka, 3 settlements located at a distance of 11 to 16 km from Kharkiv.
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PM Narendra Modi also spoke to President Vladimir Putin Wednesday and sought Russian assistance in the evacuation of Indian nationals from Kharkiv. “The leaders reviewed the situation in Ukraine, especially in the city of Kharkiv where many Indian students are stuck,’’ said the government in a statement.
While Putin stressed that Russia was working to ensure evacuation of students through the shortest route to Russia, the Russian side also claimed that the students had been taken hostage by Ukraine forces who were using them as human shields and preventing them from travelling to Belgorod in Russia. The Russian defence ministry went on to say that Russian forces were ready to send students home from Russian territory in their own military transport planes.

It is understood that Russian forces will not target these settlements even as they further intensify their offensive in Kharkiv. The Indian embassy asked students to proceed on foot, in case they were unable to find any vehicle, and reach these settlements by 6 pm local time. The settlements are located to the immediate south and southwest of Kharkiv.
Kharkiv is where the majority of 3000 Indian students still in Ukraine were based until Wednesday evening. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said 17000 out of the 20000 Indians in Ukraine had managed to leave Ukraine till now.
Earlier in the day, Russian ambassador Denis Alipov said Moscow was working to fulfil India’s request for evacuation of Indian students stranded in eastern Ukraine to Russian territory. In anticipation, India had earlier placed officials in Belgorod and Kursk near the border with Ukraine.

The official said while the situation in eastern Ukraine remained of concern, there were encouraging signs like many students managing to leave Kharkiv on trains Tuesday night and the next morning. He said a “substantial segment” of the Indian embassy in Kyiv was operating from a new office in Lviv near the border with Poland. The location of the remaining segment, according to Bagchi, is dynamic and that these officials could go to eastern Ukraine to help Indian students.
Bagchi said IAF has joined Operation Ganga, and the first C-17 flight from Bucharest is expected to return to Delhi from Bucharest later tonight. “Three more IAF flights will be undertaken today, from Budapest, Rzeszow and Bucharest,” he said.
“Humanitarian aid in form of medicines, medical equipment, tents, blankets, solar lamps and other material is being sent to Ukraine in tranches. 1st tranche weighing 2 tons comprising medicines was sent on March 1 through Poland and 3 more tranches (tents, blankets, sleeping mats etc – 16 x 2 tons) were sent on March 2 (1 by IAF flight) through Romania and Poland,” he added.