New Delhi [India], February 28 (ANI): At the high-level meeting on Monday evening over the Ukraine crisis, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the entire government machinery is working round the clock to ensure that all Indians there are safe and secure, informed Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi. This was the second high-level meeting chaired by the Prime Minister during the day over the prevailing situation in Ukraine.
External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia, Foreign Secretary of India Harsh V Shringla, Union Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju, among other senior bureaucrats, were present in this meeting. “PM @narendramodi chaired a high-level meet, his second today, to review the ongoing efforts under #OperationGanga to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine. PM said that the entire government machinery is working round the clock to ensure that all Indians there are safe & secure,” Bagchi tweeted.
In a series of tweets, Bagchi informed that during the meeting the Prime Minister pointed out that the visit of four senior ministers as his ‘Special Envoys’ to various nations will energize the evacuation efforts. “Prime Minister pointed that the visit of four senior ministers as his Special Envoys to various nations will energize the evacuation efforts. It is reflective of the priority the Government attaches to this matter,” he tweeted.
He also said that the first consignment of relief supplies to Ukraine will be dispatched on Tuesday.
“Prime Minister noted that the first consignment of relief supplies to Ukraine to deal with the humanitarian situation on Ukraine‘s borders would be despatched tomorrow,” Bagchi said. “Guided by India’s motto of the world being one family, PM @narendramodi stated that India will help people from neighboring countries and developing countries who are stranded in Ukraine and may seek assistance,” he added.
Government sources on Monday said that the ‘Special Envoys’ including Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kiren Rijiju, and Gen (Retd) VK Singh will travel to neighboring countries of Ukraine to coordinate evacuations of stranded Indians amid ongoing Russian military operations in Ukraine.
On February 24, the Prime Minister chaired a Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) meeting in New Delhi on the Ukraine crisis. The union government under the leadership of the Prime Minister has launched “Operation Ganga” to bring back stranded students and Indian citizens from the conflict-torn Ukraine. Special flights are being operated by Air India under “Operation Ganga”.
Earlier in the day, Bagchi said that India has evacuated over 8,000 nationals since the initial advisories were issued by the country. He also informed that the six evacuation flight have landed in India bringing back around 1400 citizens. (ANI)
Evacuating Indians stuck in interior parts of Ukraine closer to Russian side major challenge, hope Centre prioritizes this challenge: Tharoor
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 28 (ANI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Monday said that the evacuation of stranded citizens of India from Ukraine is the major priority of the government amid the ongoing tensions due to Russia’s military operation in the Eastern European country, and hoped that the Central Government gives this “challenge” the “priority it deserves”.
Speaking to the reporters here, Tharoor said, “The evacuation of our citizens is a major priority. Some countries started that process earlier. But we have a rather large number of citizens, about 20,000 citizens, mainly medical students who are scattered throughout Ukraine. We should definitely take urgent action to expedite their freedom and bring them back home.”
“Some, however, are stuck in the interior, some are living in basements without food and water and some are closer to the Russian side. So we have a major challenge. I hope the government gives this challenge the priority it deserves,” the Congress MP added.
Asked about the role of the United Nations in easing out the tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Tharoor said that the UN can be effective when all members come together, not when a permanent member uses a Veto power. “United Nations(UN) is a platform&an actor also. In terms of being a platform UN can be effective when member states come together with an agreement but not against a permanent member with veto power,” he said. Meanwhile, amid the ongoing Russian military operations in Ukraine, Union Minister of Civil Aviation
Jyotiraditya Scindia will be overseeing evacuation operations of stranded Indians in Romania and Moldova, while Minister of Law Kiren Rijiju will be visiting Slovakia.
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri will be overlooking operations in Hungary, and Minister of State in the Ministry of Road Transport Gen (Retd) VK Singh will manage evacuations in Poland.
Earlier today, as the sixth evacuation flight from Hungary’s capital Budapest carrying 240 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine landed at the Delhi airport on Monday, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi welcomed them and said the Indian government is working round the clock to bring back every Indian in this hour of crisis. (ANI)
