There are air strikes every 30 minutes, say Indian students in Ukraine

Students collect snow, as water supply has been disrupted, on Friday

Indian students stuck at the State Medical University in Sumy city of Ukraine are pleading to the Indian government to evacuate them immediately. Some of them mid-day spoke to say the attacks by the Russian forces have intensified and if they try to leave on their own, they might be killed. They added that there is limited power supply and the water connection has been disrupted, forcing them to go outside to collect snow.

Heavy bombings on Thursday night have battered the city, disrupting electricity supply for several hours, severing water connection and affecting the mobile network as well. They had to spend the night in the freezing temperature, students said.

‘Completely trapped'

"We are completely trapped in the hostel, with limited supply of electricity and no water... We are daring to step out to collect snow, which we melt for brushing our teeth and use the water in the toilet," said Mohammad Faisal, a first-year student who hails from Bihar. "In the past one week, we have come from filtered water to soda water to tap water, and now snow," he said, adding that many students have not eaten anything for days.

Mohammad Mehtab Raza, a fourth-year student from Bihar, said there was a complete blackout for four-five hours following missile attacks on Thursday night. "After the blast, the sky had turned a mix of yellow and red. We all got scared and rushed to the bunker," Raza said.

Over 1,000 Indian students from different states, including Maharashtra, Bihar, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Punjab, Delhi, are trapped in the hostels of the university in Sumy, which is hardly 50 km from Ukraine-Russia border. Besides, there are students from other countries as well. The attacks have also destroyed roads, bridges and rail services, said the students. They added that the university had not given them a clear picture about the situation, otherwise they would have left before Russia launched the invasion on February 24.

Students plead

The students have made videos to appeal to the Government of India for evacuation. "We have been noticing air strikes every 30 minutes... We are all terrified. It's been more than a week, and we don't know if we will be rescued. But we are still hoping," said Raza.

Ahmed Shaikh Raza, another student from Chhattisgarh, said, "We need help. We request the Indian government to immediately evacuate us." Gurleen Kaur, who is from Punjab, said, "Not a single student has been rescued from Sumy. Please help us." Raza said, "It would take at least 5 hours to reach Kharkiv or Kyiv, from where we will have to travel the Hungary border after crossing several villages, a journey that would take around 10 to 12 hours. We cannot think of going on our own in this war zone. We request the prime minister to immediately evacuate us."

"A few foreign students had left the hostel, but they were killed in the attacks. That is why none of us have dared to leave," Raza said. "We have been told that a few buses are waiting at the Russian border, but how will we reach there? The rail and road services are completely destroyed. The Russian border is the closest to us, hardly 50 km. But it is too scary to step out. We fear that we will be killed if we go out," Raza said.

"The temperature is below 0 degree Celsius. Please evacuate us or we will be killed," he added. Raza said the Ukrainian government has deployed one sniper in each hostel building.

‘Parents are panicking'

Faisal said, "My mother has been wondering why I am not coming back, as many Indian students have already returned home. I have been making excuses that everything is fine here but she knows that I am telling a lie."

"The mobile network is pathetic and we all are connected with our parents through WhatsApp calls or on chats. Our parents panic when there is no internet connection. The network is pathetic in the bunker, so we return to our hostel rooms to stay connected with our parents. The situation is grim, many students have started to lose hope. But we are trying to console each other," he added.