New Delhi: Amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a third-year engineering student has refused to leave the war-torn country without his pet dog.
According to Rishabh Kaushik, who studies at the Kharkiv National University of Radio Electronics in east Ukraine, he has been trying to get all the paperwork and clearances done so that he can take his dog when he gets airlifted, but has been stonewalled by officials who keep asking for more documents.
"They are asking for my air ticket. How can I have an air ticket when the Ukrainian airspace is closed?" NDTV quoted Rishabh as saying.
Rishabh said that although he reached out to the Indian government's Animal Quarantine and Certification Service (AQCS) in Delhi and the Indian embassy in Ukraine, no help was offered.
In a video uploaded on social media, Rishabh said that he had called someone at Delhi's IGI airport regarding his situation but the person on the other end hurled abuses at him and refused to cooperate.
Rishabh said that he got 'Malibu', the rescue puppy, last February in Kharkiv.
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"I would have been in India right now had the Indian government given me the required NOC (no objection certificate) as per the laws," he said, adding that he is hiding in a bunker in Kyiv as the Russian forces attacked the city with artillery fire and cruise missiles.
Amid sirens going off and sounds of gunfire and bombing, Rishabh has to come up from the bunker to keep his dog warm in the freezing temperature.
"I am stuck here since my flight was on February 27," he said.
Introducing his puppy in the video, he said that the animal is stressed out and has been crying all the time because of the sounds of constant bombing.
In an appeal to the Indian government, he said, "If you can, please help us. Even the Indian embassy in Kyiv is not helping us out. We don't have updates from anyone."