New Delhi [India], March 2 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a high-level meeting on Wednesday to review efforts to evacuate Indians in the wake of Ukraine crisis. The meeting on the Ukraine issue will begin at 8:30 pm, officials said. The Prime Minister had also held a level meeting on Tuesday to review the efforts to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine.

The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Minister of Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and senior officials. On Monday the Prime Minister chaired two meetings to review the ongoing efforts under Operation Ganga for the return of Indians from Ukraine amid military operations by Russia.
Another meeting was held on Sunday. The Cabinet Committee on Security had met on February 24 in the wake of Russian military actions in Ukraine.

The Centre has ramped up efforts to evacuate Indian citizens stranded in Ukraine amid heightened tensions. The government has also deployed ‘special envoys’ to four countries bordering Ukraine to coordinate and oversee the evacuation process of Indian nationals. (ANI)

6 flights to bring back over 1,200 Indians from Bucharest today, says Scindia

Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said that six flights will bring over 1,200 Indian students back to India from the Romanian capital Bucharest today. “We are mounting 6 flights today in Bucharest, Romania carrying over 1,200 Indian students back to India. I thank Air India, IndiGo, Air India Express for rising to the challenge and working round the clock with us on the evacuation operations. #OperationGanga,” the Union Minister said in a tweet.

Scindia, who is overseeing the evacuation efforts of Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine as a Government of India-appointed special envoy, on Wednesday (local time) met the Indian Ambassador to Romania and Moldova, Rahul Shrivastava to discuss the operational issues for evacuation and the flight plan from Bucharest and Suceava in the coming days. He also interacted with Indian students at Henri Coanda International Airport in Bucharest in Romania.

After Russia’s forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, the Government of India launched ‘Operation Ganga’ to bring back stranded Indian nationals from the conflict-torn Ukraine. As part of the ‘Operation Ganga’ mission, special flights are being operated free of cost. The first such evacuation flight carrying 219 Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine landed in Mumbai on February 26. Several such flights have landed in India so far.

Indian Air Force (IAF) has also joined the government’s evacuation efforts as its C-17 transport aircraft left for Romania in the early hours of Wednesday morning from the Hindan airbase near New Delhi.
24×7 control centres have been set up to assist in the evacuation of Indian nationals through the border crossing points with Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities escalating the ongoing tensions between the two countries. Ukraine gained independence in 1991 after the disintegration of the Soviet Union.

Earlier in February, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that special military operations are being launched “to protect” the people in the Donbas region. He also warned other countries that any attempt to interfere with the Russian action would lead to “consequences”. Leaders from a number of countries including the UK, the US, Canada, and the European Union have condemned Russia’s military operations in Ukraine. (ANI)

Kerala CM seeks PM Modi’s urgent intervention to set up humanitarian corridor for Indian students stranded in Ukraine

Taking to Twitter, the chief minister wrote “Sought PM @narendramodi ‘s urgent intervention with the Russian leadership to set up a humanitarian corridor for our students to come out of the war zone. Requested urgent steps to provide food and water to those in bunkers with the help of concerned governments and NGOs like @ifrc.” Earlier on February 27, Vijayan wrote to Prime Minister and requested an urgent intervention for Indian students stranded in Ukraine.

In his letter, Vijayan said that many people (mostly young students), who have taken refuge in bunkers are going without food and water, and are in a thoroughly disturbed mental state. “Those who have taken refuge in bunkers in places of eastern Ukraine like Kiev, Kaekhiv and Sumi are in urgent need of food and water. Urgent help for evacuating them through Russia is required,” the letter read.

The Chief Minister also mentioned that a large number of students have walked to the Poland border braving freezing cold, but the Ukraine officials are not allowing them to cross the border. “There are reports that force is being used against them. Step for sending officials from our embassy, who can effectively communicate with the Ukraine officials at the border may be taken immediately,” he requested.

The government said on Wednesday that fifteen flights are scheduled in the next 24 hours to bring back Indians from countries neighboring Ukraine, which is facing a conflict situation, and that some of these flights are en route to their destinations. Briefing the media here on the government’s evacuation efforts, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said that Indian Air Force aircraft has joined Operation Ganga.

“As many as 15 flights are scheduled over next 24 hours, some of these are already en route. Indian Air Force aircraft has joined Operation Ganga, with the first C17 flight from Bucharest expected to return today to Delhi,” he said. (ANI)

6 Punjab MPs meet MoS Meenakshi Lekhi, urge her to evacuate Indian students from Ukraine soon

New Delhi [India], March 2 (ANI): A delegation of six Members of Parliament from Punjab on Wednesday met Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi and urged her to evacuate Indian students from Ukraine at the earliest. They laid special emphasis on students held in Kharkiv which is on the Russian border but almost 1600 kms from Poland and Romania border and that city is the epicentre of conflict between Ukrainian and Russian forces. The ministers also requested Lekhi that after the death of one student, the anxiety of people has increased.

“Ukrainian police brutality on Indians should be stopped at every cost as these disturbing videos of girls being beaten and abducted had angered every Indian,” they said. They also handed the list of stranded people and students of Punjab to the MoS. Minister assured the delegation that the Government of India is taking every step for the safety, security and evacuation of all Indians in Ukraine.
She also assured that Indian Air force planes have been pressed to service for fast and effective evacuation from Ukraine. Jasbir Singh Gill, Manish Tiwari, Gurjit Aujla, Ravneet Bittu, Chowdhary Santokh Singh, Dr Amar Singh were part of the delegation. (ANI)