NewsGate Press Network

Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has said there are no Indians left in the Ukrainian capital city Kyiv as on Tuesday the 1st of March 2022.

Speaking to media persons during a special briefing on Operation Ganga  – launched specifically to bring back all Indian nations  – H S Shringla said he held a second meeting with envoys of Russia and Ukraine in Delhi earlier today and sought their government’s assurance for safe passage to all Indians.

The meeting took place soon after reports came-in that war in Ukraine took first life of an Indian  – a student from Karnataka who had gone to Kharkiv to study medicine.

It was also announced that India will operate 26 flights over the next three days to fly back Indian citizens who have moved from Ukraine to neighboring countries.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired another high level meeting on the country’s evacuation efforts. Besides Romania’s Bucharest and Hungary’s Budapest, airports in Poland and Slovak Republic will also be used, the Foreign Secretary added.

There were an estimated 20,000 Indian students in Ukraine when the government issued its first advisory. “From that number, approximately 12,000 have since left Ukraine, which is 60 per cent of the total,” he said.

“Of the remaining 40 per cent, roughly half remain in conflict zone in Kharkiv, Sumy area and the other half has either reached the western borders of Ukraine or are heading towards the western part of Ukraine… they are generally out of conflict areas,” the Foreign Secretary said.

A dedicated twitter handle was started to aid the students and the services of Air India was augmented by private carriers Spicejet and Indigo. The government even pressed the Air Force into service, saying it will speed up the process.

Today, the government said all Indians have left Kyiv, where Russian offensive is likely to intensify next. The Indian embassy in Kyiv has also been shut.

“All of our nationals have left Kyiv,” Mr Shringla said. “The information with us is that we have no more nationals left in Kyiv, nobody has contacted

All our inquiries reveal that each and every one of our nationals has come out of Kyiv,” he added.