225 students returned to Punjab from Ukraine so far: Chief Secretary
Darpan News Desk IANS, 04 Mar, 2022 01:25 PM
Chandigarh, March 4 (IANS) As many as 225 students have returned safely to Punjab so far from the war-torn Ukraine, Chief Secretary Anirudh Tewari said on Friday.
While directing officials to ensure safe return of the remaining students and other persons stuck in Ukraine, he said the state government is sparing no effort to help the distressed families in this hour of crisis.
Reviewing the status of calls recieved on the state government's dedicated 24x7 control room numbers i.e. 1100 (to call from within Punjab) and +91-172-4111905 (to call from outside India), the Chief Secretary was apprised that 476 calls have been received so far on these numbers and the queries are being immediately forwarded to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
He was also informed that 326 affected families have been visited physically by state government officials.
Tewari urged the affected persons and their relatives to immediately contact on the Punjab government's helpline numbers so that they can be provided assistance.
He also appealed the parents and relatives of the stranded persons to ask their children get in touch with the embassy and 'Government of India' officials at border posts and strictly follow the guidelines of the MEA.
Resident Commissioner, Punjab, Rakhee Gupta Bhandari apprised the Chief Secretary that all the necessary arrangements have been made for safe return of stranded students and persons.
She said they are in constant touch with the Indian embassy to ensure that no Punjab resident shall face any kind of problem in returning to their homes.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Badal on Thursday demanded a high court monitored probe into the manner in which the Congress government in Punjab was playing with the people's lives by creating an artificial shortage of vaccines by selling vaccine doses at a hefty profit to private hospitals.
The electronic conversation took place as US President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that India will receive Covid vaccines directly from the US stockpile, the White House said.
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General M.M. Naravane, reached Kashmir on Wednesday on a two-day visit to review the prevailing security situation in the Union Territory (UT), the army said in a statement.
"There have been several unfounded media reports that have peddled misinformation among the masses regarding this exercise of national importance," a ministry statement said, adding that the total number of Covid vaccine doses administered in the country so far stand at 21,85,46,667.
The Congress said that it was "appropriate for our initial statement to note that the intrusion by Israeli forces into the Holy Al Aqsa mosque during Ramzan prayers had ruptured the delicate peace in the region".
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday suggested the young patients should be prioritised in the distribution of Liposomal Amphotericin B drug, used for treating black fungus, "as they hold promise of future over the older ones who have lived their lives".
