Guna: Ukrainian guards ill-treating students fleeing war zone, says Guna student

Guna (Madhya Pradesh): Shruti Nayak, a medical student who returned to her home here from war-torn Ukraine, earlier this week, has claimed that Ukrainian guards were beating up Indian students who were fleeing the war zone.

Videos of a purported security officer hitting a student had gone viral a couple of days ago as the stranded students tried to reach Ukraine's western borders after Russia launched an invasion of the country.

Shruti, a third-year MBBS student at Ivano National Medical University, reached home in Guna after being evacuated by an Air India flight. She said that the situation in Ukraine is very bad.

"Ukrainian guards were harassing Indian students who were fleeing the war zone and even beating them up," she claimed.

"I am fortunate enough that I reached India and now meeting family members," she said.

Nayak had booked a return ticket for February 16, but the flight was cancelled. She then booked a ticket for March 3, but it too got cancelled, she said.

Nayak then travelled 400 kilometres on a bus to reach Romania on February 26 and the government there helped Indian students, she said, while also thanking the Indian government.

She boarded a special Air India flight for evacuees on February 27 from Romania and reached New Delhi at 6.30 pm (IST) the same day.

State chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had said earlier that more than 180 students stuck in Ukraine have contacted a helpline set up by the state government. So far, 29 persons from Madhya Pradesh have returned from Ukraine, Chouhan stated on Monday night.