All efforts are being made by the government to ensure the evacuation of Indian nationals, and the many Indian students, in Ukraine. This is being planned via the land border crossing with its neighbouring countries, after which, they will be brought home, official sources informed on Friday, February 25.
The transportation cost will be borne by the government and evacuation flights are being arranged, the official sources say, as stated in a report by PTI.
The focus is on evacuating Indians, especially students, through Ukraine's land borders with Romania, Slovakia, Poland and Hungry as the airspace in Ukraine has been closed following the Russian military offensive.
On Friday, Air India has plans to operate two flights to Bucharest, the Romanian capital, to evacuate Indians, the government official said.
The Indian Embassy in Budapest said that teams are being arranged at the Chop-Zahony check post on the Hungarian border as well as at Porubne-Siret on the Romanian border around Chernivtsi in Uzhhorod.
The advisory also asked Indian nationals, especially students, who reside near the border checkpoints, to depart in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs. Students have been specifically asked to get in touch with student contractors for orderly movement.
They have been asked to carry cash, passport, COVID-19 double vaccination certificate and have been asked that the printout of the Indian flag be placed prominently on the vehicles and buses that they use while they are commuting.
At Thursday night's media briefing, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that the evacuation of Indians is the topmost priority for the government and that teams of Indian officials were on their way to the Zahony border post in Hungary, Krakowiec land border in Poland, Vysne Nemecke in Slovak Republic and Suceava land border in Romania.
"We have also asked some of our officers to go across and set up camp offices in Ukraine close to the border to the places we have identified — Lviv, which is close to Poland and Chernivtsi which is close to Romania," he said.
The Foreign Secretary also said that out of around 20,000 Indians in Ukraine, about 4,000 have returned in the last few days.