NEW DELHI: The advisory by India asking its citizens to immediately leave war-torn Ukraine's Kharkiv city panicked the stranded Indian students while their parents back home got glued to the TV and surfed the Internet frantically for updates.
The embassy has asked Indians to proceed to Pisochyn (11 km), Babai (12 km) and Bezlyudivka (16 km) even by foot if they cannot find vehicles or buses.
Reyham Khan, a first-year medical student said, "We have received an advisory today to leave immediately, there is so much chaos."
"People have started walking, but to where? We were staying in bunkers sending SOS messages.
But this sudden directive has left everyone in a panic," the student said over the phone.
Aanchal Sharma, the mother of a second-year medical student of Kharkiv National Medical University, is praying for her son's safety who has left the bombed-out city.
"My son has left for Pisochyn but I am going to be on pins till I hear from him. This feels like sitting on a ticking bomb," said the anxious mother.
Another student, Pragun, said they took a lot of pain to reach the railway station but found it chock-a-block with people trying to flee the Russian military offensive.
"All the trains are full and we are not allowed to board them".
In a video sent from Kharkiv, a student heard saying, "I am standing at Kharkiv railway station for three hours. I left much before the advisory was issued but we haven't been allowed to board the trains. The cold is bone-chilling."
The Ministry of External Affairs said the Embassy in Ukraine asked the Indian nationals to leave Kharkiv immediately based on information from the Russian side.
"For their safety and security, they must leave Kharkiv immediately repeat immediately in the light of the deteriorating situation.
They should proceed to Pisochyn, Babai and Bezlyudivka as soon as possible for their safety," the embassy said.
The first advisory was put out on Twitter at 5 pm IST, while the second one was issued an hour later.
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri who is in Budapest to oversee the evacuation of Indians fleeing Ukraine tweeted, "There was joy and spontaneous cheer as I interacted with our students at Hotel Grand Hungarian who were on their way to Budapest Airport to board the special aircraft waiting to fly them home.
"Modi Govt will bring back every young student from Ukraine," he said.
As India steps up efforts to evacuate its citizens from war-hit Ukraine, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Wednesday that efforts are on to reach cities in the eastern part of that country, though it is not easy.
The eastern part of Ukraine has been witnessing intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops.
The comments by MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi came hours after the Indian embassy in Ukraine asked all Indians in Kharkiv to leave the city immediately for three safe zones.
He said nearly 17,000 Indian nationals have left Ukraine's borders since advisories were issued over a fortnight back.
Bagchi said 15 flights are scheduled over the next 24 hours and some of them are already operating.
"The cities in eastern remain areas of concern for us. Some students were able to board trains out of Kharkiv yesterday night and this morning and we assisted in the process through the student contractors and other partners," Bagchi said.
"We have been in communication with the Russians regarding the safe passage of our nationals from Kharkiv and other nearby cities," he said.
Bachi said India is also exploring the option of reaching the eastern part of Ukraine to help in the evacuation of Indian nationals stranded in the areas.
"It's not easy because the route is not open at all times," he said at a media briefing.
Separately, he said an Indian national, identified as Chandan Jindal, died in Ukraine due to natural causes.
He was in the hospital for the last few days.
Bagchi also said that there has been a sharp increase in the number of Indians who have left Ukraine over the recent past.
"We now estimate that nearly 17,000 Indian nationals have left Ukraine's borders since our advisories were issued. This of course includes some Indians who had not registered with the embassy earlier," Bagchi said.
Earlier, the MEA had said that 20,000 Indians were in Ukraine when India had issued the first advisory in mid-February when the tension between Russia and Ukraine started building up.
Bagchi said the Indian embassy in Kyiv was asked to set up a temporary office in Lviv to facilitate border crossings by Indian nationals, adding a large segment of the team in the mission is now at Lviv.
The MEA spokesperson also said that a mechanism has been put in place for issuing emergency certificates to those Indian citizens who somehow lost their passports.
About the evacuation mission, Bagchi said flights under 'Operation Ganga' have increased sharply and that six flights have landed in India in the last 24 hours taking the total to 15.
He said the total number of Indians who have returned on board these flights is 3,352.
He said the advisory issued by the Indian embassy in Ukraine asking citizens to leave Kharkiv is based on information from Russia.
"We would urge all our nationals to leave Kharkiv immediately to safe zones," he said.