Leave Kharkiv under all circumstances by 6 pm: Indian Embassy to citizens
Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Mar, 2022 05:45 PM
New Delhi, March 2 (IANS) In a distress call, the Indian Embassy in Ukraine has directed all stranded citizens to leave the second most populous city, Kharkiv under all circumstances by 6 p.m. (Ukrainian time, IST 9.30 p.m.) on Wednesday.
The embassy stated: "Urgent advisory to all Indian nationals in Kharkiv. For their safety and security they must leave Kharkiv immediately. Proceed to Pesochin, Babaye and Bezlyudovka as soon as possible."
It reiterated, "Under all circumstances they must reach these settlements by 1800 hours (Ukrainian time) today."
Kharkiv, a largely Russian-speaking city near the Russian border, has a population of around 1.4 million. It has been found that Russian troops have landed in Kharkiv and are engaged in heavy fighting with Ukrainian forces.
Russia shelled Kharkiv damaging various installations.
Further, videos are circulating online of an apparent attack on the regional police and intelligence headquarters in Kharkiv.
"Practically there are no areas left in Kharkiv where an artillery shell has not yet hit," Anton Gerashchenko, adviser to the Ukrainian interior minister, said in a statement posted on Telegram.
However, Russia says it is only targeting Ukraine's military infrastructure, air defence and air forces with high-precision weapons.
It was in Kharkiv where an Indian student was killed on Tuesday morning in shelling. Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, a 21-year-old medical student from Karnataka, was standing in the queue for food in Kharkiv on Tuesday morning when he was killed.
Naveen was a final year medical student at the Kharkiv National Medical University. He was from Karnataka's Haveri and lived near a prominent government building that was blown up by Russian soldiers.
The war between two countries has entered into the sixth day after Russian President Vladimir Putin called for military operation.
Students at the Ternopil Medical University in Ukraine capital Kyiv are in constant touch with the Indian Embassy. The varsity is also extending assistance to the students. There are around 20,000 Indian nationals in Ukraine. Most of them are medical students.
The announcement marks this week's one-year anniversary of a supply chain review that found the U.S. is overly dependent on foreign sources, especially China.
Court documents allege there were also two undocumented Indian nationals in the van, along with snacks and provisions. Not far away, in southern Manitoba, RCMP and border officials discovered four frozen bodies, later identified as a couple and their two children from India, who investigators believe were part of a larger group making their way to the United States.
Around 20 medical students from Bareilly and Rampur district are stuck in Ukraine, following border tension with Russia. They want the government of India to evacuate them, according to family members. There are currently around 50 students from Bareilly studying in Ukraine.
The flight ticket prices have risen from Rs 50,000 to over Rs 70,000 and the students say it is this financial hurdle that is forcing them to stay put despite the advisory by the Indian government. On normal days, the flight tickets would cost Rs 21,000-Rs 26,000. But now, due to the Russia-Ukraine tensions, the rates have jacked up.
Former Amazon employee Rohit Kadimisetty has been sentenced to 10 months in prison with a fine of $50,000 for a fraud and bribery scheme targeting the e-commerce giant's online Marketplace. The US Department of Justice (DoJ) said in a statement that Kadimisetty, 28, of Northridge, California, pleaded guilty to conspiracy in September 2021.
