Indian students whose medical education has been impacted due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine now have an offer from the Russian Consul General Oleg Avdeev to complete their education in Russia instead. 

As per news agency ANI, the diplomat said, "Indian students who left Ukraine can continue their education in Russia as the medical syllabus is almost the same (as Ukraine). They know the language of the people, as, in Ukraine, most of them speak Russian. They're most welcome in Russia." He added that students applying to pursue their higher education in Russia is an "upward trend."

About 20,000 Indian students returned from Ukraine earlier this year once the war with Russia broke out. These medical students found their careers in jeopardy and requested the National Medical Commission to accommodate them in Indian medical colleges. However, their request was denied by the NMC in the Supreme Court.

In July, the NMC released an affidavit in response to the Supreme Court's directions to formulate a framework for those foreign medical students who came back to India due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war so that they can continue their academics and clinical training. The affidavit permitted Ukraine-returned students "academic mobility" to allow them to continue their education in countries neighbouring Ukraine. 

The NMC had said in the July 18 affidavit that foreign medical graduates who had to leave their country of study due to war/pandemic and finished their studies online, but were not able to appear for clinical training will now be allowed to appear for the Foreign Medical Graduate Exam (FMGE) which will allow them to practice medicine in India. Graduates who qualify for the FMGE will be required to complete a two-year Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI) to make up for the lack of clinical training.