No food, no money: Indian students left to fend for themselves in Ukraine

Many stranded Indian students in Ukraine have left their hostels at their own peril to reach Lviv, which is close to the Polish border.

Indians have started traveling to the checkpoints on the border amid a raging fight between Ukrainian and Russian forces. There is gridlock on the borders for days now.

Many Indian students are still stuck in underground metros and bunkers. People have been sharing videos alleging that they are not getting any help from the Indian Embassy.

Sources said that the Indian embassy in Kyiv has been shut down and staff is on their way to the western part of the country. Sources said the embassy did its best to ensure no Indians are left stranded in the city.

A third-year medical student from VN Karazin National Medical University started her 10-hour-long journey to Lviv by train on Tuesday. She however has no idea when she will reach India.

"After we received a message to leave Kyiv, we took a risk and reached the border. But we have no idea when we will reach India. Once we reach the border, we have to connect to the Indian Embassy for further help", she said. There are still many students who have been crying for help. They are unable to reach the border given the precarious security situation. In a video, a medical student said the Embassy is not responding to their calls.

"We have been sending messages and videos on how Indians are being harassed. We called them several times but to no avail. Officials from other countries are helping their people, but the Indian government is doing nothing. We are 800 km away from our current location. How we can reach the border without any help from the Embassy?" asked a medical student.

According to students, soldiers near the Romanian border are harassing and beating them. Hundreds of Indian students have taken shelter in underground metros. It is also found that around 400 students of Kharkiv National Medical University have been stuck in bunker for almost a week. They are unable to go out due to shelling. They are running out of food and water.

As of March 1, 34 students from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana returned to their native places.