Karnataka students trapped in Ukraine worried about food and water

Anxious parents appeal to the Chief Minister to get their children back home safe and sound

On Thursday morning, sirens were sounded across Ukraine while explosions were reported in cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv and Lutsk among many others. That afternoon, Jeevita Shindhe, who is studying medical science in Kyiv, assured her parents in Kalaburagi over a video-call that she was safe. She had booked her flight for March 8. With air traffic suspended, her parents, who head the biochemistry departments in Gulbarga and Tumakuru universities, are frantic. And they’re not the only ones. 

Across Karnataka, parents have made fervent appeals to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai to get their children back home safely. Most of the students are studying in medical colleges. There are reports of six students from Raichur, two each from Belagavi, one each from Vijayapura, Dharwad and Gadag districts stuck in Ukraine. 

According to Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra, a final-year female MBBS student is in Kar, while another boy, a first-year MBBS student is in Kyiv. Both were scheduled to return on Saturday, but could not leave Ukraine because of issues with documentation. 

In Shivamogga, parents of students met Home Minister Araga Jnanendra. “We are in touch with the concerned officers. Once flight services resume, they will be brought back home”, he said. But students are worried about getting access to food and basic amenities if the situation escales. 

S .K. Soppinamath, from Koppal who is doing a medical course in Ukraine, was due to return home on February 28. He said he was in touch with Indian diplomats who reportedly assured him that they would send him back home after March 8. “There’s no problem right now. If Russian forces continue to advance, we may have to struggle even for food,” he told his parents over the phone.

Although they have confirmation that their children are safe, supplies are scarce. Praveen Ajaraddi, who is pursuing a medical course at Kharkiv, posted a Facebook live video talking about the lack of water and food for students in the hostel. He has also said that there had been no response from the Indian embassy there despite repeated pleas. 

For Priyanka Gurumallesh of Mysuru, a second year MBBS student of Bukovinian State Medical University, in Chernivtsi, western Ukraine, the trip back home could not have been more timely. She reached Mysuru at 3 a.m. on Wednesday and within 24 hours the main airport at Kyiv from where international flights fly out of Ukraine, was shut down. “’When we left Ukraine the situation did not seem as alarming but television news reports this morning came as a shock’’, said Priyanka who is one of the thousands of Indians who study in BSMU.