THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ending their 13-day ordeal since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, nearly 700 Indian students of Sumy State University were finally evacuated from the battered north-eastern city and were reportedly on the way to the country’s western border. The fresh ceasefire declared in Sumy and three other cities on Tuesday helped the evacuation, even though a similar cessation of hostilities declared a day earlier proved futile and the rescue mission had to be deferred at the last minute.
Renish Joseph, a student coordinator in the university, told TNIE that the fresh evacuation bid on Tuesday was successful and that all students have left the university. “We are headed towards a safe location. The embassy has asked us not to share details of the itinerary due to security reasons,” he said.
Two students from Kerala, to whom TNIE spoke, also confirmed that a convoy of over a dozen buses was heading south. They were also barred by authorities from giving out more details.
“Since we were asked to get down from the bus after boarding it on Monday, we were quite skeptical of the evacuation plan on Tuesday. But things happened at a fast pace and in a highly secretive manner on Tuesday. We have been asked to switch off our phones and not to reveal the exact locations en-route,” said one of the students preferring anonymity, through a WhatsApp voice clip sent to TNIE minutes before departure.
Meanwhile, sources in the embassy said the evacuees were being taken to Poltava in central Ukraine which is around 175 km south of Sumy. “From Poltava, they will head to the western borders. However, the exact point of exit from Ukraine is yet to be decided,” said an official.
“Once the evacuees reach Poltava, the onward route will be decided based on the prevailing security scenario. Crossing the Ukrainian border either through Poland or Romania is being considered,” said the official.