New Delhi: As tension continues to escalate in Ukraine, the Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said that more than 3,000 Indians have been brought back from Ukraine and the process is still going on, reports news agency PTI.
“In the next 24 hours, 18 flights have been scheduled,” he added.
Under ‘Operation Ganga’ 30 flights have brought back 6,400 Indians from Ukraine so far, said Arindam Bagchi, Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs during a press briefing on Thursday.
A total of 18,000 Indian nationals have left Ukraine since the first advisory was issued, he added.
Bagchi said that more flights are being scheduled for the next 2-3 days to bring back more Indians stuck in Ukraine.
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The MEA estimated that a few thousand Indians are still in Kharkiv as 20,000 Indians had registered initially. “Registration of 20,000 Indian nationals was done initially, but there were many who did not register. We estimate a few hundred citizens still remain in Kharkiv. Our priority is to take students out safely in whatever mode of transport possible,” Bagchi said.
He appreciated the efforts by the Ukrainian government and the neighbouring countries “for hosting our people and providing support in evacuating them.”
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After an advisory was issued yesterday, a large number of Indian students have already left Kharkiv and the number of Indians waiting to cross the Ukrainian border has reduced, he informed.
“This increased number of flights reflects the large number of Indians who have crossed over from Ukraine and are now in the neighbouring countries. We will further step up efforts to bring all these Indian nationals back to India at the earliest,” said the MEA spokesperson.
(With inputs from ANI and PTI)