KOCHI: “Our children are sitting inside a bunker in the hope that they will be evacuated soon. They can hear gunshots. Everyone is terrified,” said a parent of a student stranded in Ukraine’s Sumy. The parents of over 15 students stranded in Sumy gathered at the Ernakulam collectors’ camp office on Sunday morning to appeal for help.
The plight of the stranded students in the war zone was raised by their parents on Sunday morning with the collector. “The officials said they could help only if the students managed to reach the border on their own,” said Girish Kumar, a parent.
Over 600 students are stuck in Sumy. Of them, over 500 are Malayalis. “The easiest way for the students to be evacuated is from Russia, which is 50 miles away. It is possible only if the government plans an evacuation route via Russia,” said Chithra Girish, a parent. “My daughter told me that she could hear shell bomb attacks. The government has imposed a curfew and there is no means to stock food or water,” said Chithra.
Aminul Shuhaib, a final-year medical student stranded in Sumy, told TNIE over the phone that, initially, they were told by the Indian Embassy officials not to worry and that they would be evacuated soon. Later, they told the students that if they managed to travel 1,500km and cross Ukraine’s border at their own risk, they would help them.
“We are all panicky. On hearing the siren, we rush to the bunkers. Spending hours inside the bunkers, it’s difficult to breathe due to dust, and there’s hardly any space to stand. On hearing the second siren, we rush to our rooms and stay silent. We are asked not to switch on lights or make any noise. We have limited food and water and have no idea how we will survive in the coming days, “said Aminul.
Students stuck in Sumy can only reach the borders if they have an escort. “Children are stuck in the middle. My daughter called on Saturday evening. She was crying over the phone and said she had no hope of meeting us,” said a parent.
Back to safety
“Before the beginning of the war, we were notified about the coming situation and we stocked up on food and took enough money from ATMs. Following this, the embassy began to shortlist students for evacuation. Luckily, my name was on the first list. We had a police escort to cross the border and waited for the bus to take us to Bucharest airport,” said Greeshma Thomas Anchery, a fourth-year medical student, who reached Kochi from Ukraine.
Hailing from Palakkad, Karthika Vinod Kumar, a second-year medical student at Bukovinian State Medical University, who went back to resume her studies in Ukraine in September 2020, is relieved to be back home. “Many of my friends are still waiting to be evacuated and I hope they will also come soon. I am in constant touch with them. I am grateful to the Indian and Kerala governments for their help,” Karthika said.