Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said that all 694 Indian students stranded in Ukraine's Sumy have left for Poltava today.
Answering queries of reporters about Indians stranded in Ukraine, he said, "Last night, I checked with the control room, 694 Indian students remain stranded in Sumy. Today, they have all left in buses for Poltava."
In a video tweeted by news agency ANI, a convoy consisting of 12 buses are seen leaving from the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy. Officials of the Indian Embassy and Red Cross are seen escorting them.
Watch Video:
"The evacuation from Sumy has started. There was finally some good news on Tuesday. All Indian students will be evacuated from Sumy on Tuesday itself. They will be taken to a safe location from where they will be brought to India," said Anshad Ali, a student coordinator, told news agency PTI.
A medical student at the Sumy university, who did not wish to be identified, confirmed that buses have arrived and students have started boarding the buses. "We have been told that we will go to Poltava. I am praying that we reach a safe zone and this misery is over," he told PTI.
Aashiq Hussain Sarkar, another medical student, said, "We stood in a queue for three hours in freezing cold on Monday, waiting to board the buses and then, we were told that we cannot go. Thankfully, we left Sumi on Tuesday. I am hoping that we will be in a safe zone soon."
Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and suggested that a direct conversation between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine may greatly assist the ongoing peace efforts to deal with the conflict.
PM Modi conveyed his deep concern for the safety and security of the Indian students still remaining in Sumy.
Putin briefed Modi about the ongoing measures related to humanitarian corridors for facilitating the evacuation of civilians including Indian students.
The Prime Minister welcomed the ongoing negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and expressed hope that they would lead to the cessation of the conflict.
Meanwhile, the Indian Embassy in Kyiv evacuated 75 Indian sailors stranded in Mykolaiv Port on Tuesday.
"Mission intervened to evacuate 75 Indian sailors stranded in Mykolaiv Port. Yesterday buses arranged by Mission evacuated a total of 57 sailors including 2 Lebanese & 3 Syrians. Route constraints precluded the evacuation of balance 23 sailors. Mission is attempting their evacuation today," tweeted the Embassy of India in Kyiv.
(With ANI and PTI inputs)
