Coimbatore students in Ukraine say they hear blasts, seek immediate evacuation 

Medical students of the Bogomolets National Medical University in Kyiv, said they were at the campus hostel and were waiting for the Indian Embassy to take them across to a safe country

  Students from Coimbatore who are stuck in Ukraine amidst a massive invasion by Russian forces are seeking the immediate intervention of the Indian Government for their evacuation. 

Alagulakshmi Sivakumar from Telugu Street in Coimbatore, a third-year medical student of Bogomolets National Medical University in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, said in a voice note that she, along with 11 friends sought shelter in the university hostel as staying in their apartment was not safe. 

“We are hearing blasts. There was an intelligence about possible missile attack around 3 a.m. [on Friday] and we could not sleep. We all stayed up till 6 a.m. We heard blasts 10 minutes before,” Ms. Sivakumar said in the voice note sent at 7 a.m. According to her, more than 500 students from various parts of India were staying on the campus.  “We contacted the Embassy and we have been asked not to go out. They have assured us to get in touch with us and shift us to safe countries like Poland. We are waiting [for the Embassy to contact us]” she said. 

Ahead of the full-fledged invasion by Russian forces, Ms. Sivakumar and others managed to buy groceries that can last upto four to five days. “There were queues everywhere on Thursday morning -- to buy groceries, to withdraw cash, to buy first aid kits etc. We waited for 45 minutes to get groceries and food items. Later a curfew was in place and nobody was seen outside. Though we are safe as of now, we need to be evacuated. We are under threat,” she said.  Ms. Sivakumar added that their parents were worried about the situation but they were not able to do anything to leave the war-hit country.

Another medical student, Mohamed Ashik from Mettupalayam in Coimbatore district, said in a video message that the Indian Embassy could have sped up the evacuation of students, like many other countries did. “We started to get messages from the Embassy over the past four to five days. The flight tickets were costly and many could not afford it. Some other countries warned their citizens 20 to 25 days before of a possible crisis,” he said. 

Ashik, a fourth-year medical student, said that the city he was staying in, Poltava, was not under attack as of Friday. It is situated between the eastern border of the country and the capital city of Kyiv. “We hear that airports have been shut. Runways have been closed using trucks,” he said.