Maharashtra girl stuck in Ukraine sends out desperate plea for help

A 21-year-old Indian student currently stuck in Ukraine has been sending out panicked messages to her friends since the last two days, asking for help and speedy evacuation amidst escalating war around her.

The girl, who hails from Jalna, has requested anonymity fearing for her safety. She went to Ukraine last year to pursue a course in medicine and has been trying to get out of the war-torn country ever since the crisis broke out.

On Saturday, she sent a desperate plea for help on a WhatsApp group which has her former classmates.

“Whoever has an active internet connection, please tweet to the PMO and the External affairs ministry asking them to please speed up our evacuation,” she said in a voice note while barely holding back her sobs.

She later sent a text message saying, “The situation is really bad at the Shehyni Medyka border. We had to walk for around 23 to 25 kilometres carrying a tumbler of water, some snacks and our luggage to reach the border. We have been outside in temperatures ranging from -5 to -7 degrees for three days and even after reaching the border, they did not allow us to cross. We went to the border after reading an advisory on their official account. As soon as we learned that there are not letting Indians cross, we came back. They are literally assaulting Indians over there.”

She went on to describe how several Indian students were assaulted, including a young man who suffers from asthma. Only a few girls were allowed after a lot of pleading, while the others were forced to turn around and have been living on the streets since then.

The girl’s friend Tushar Dungarwal, who has been in touch with her off and on, said, “I have only been sitting and thinking what they might be going through. Every time I sit down to eat a meal, I remember that they are all hungry and thirsty out there.”

On Sunday, videos of Indian students being assaulted by soldiers at the border went viral on the internet. The Central government, which was quick to thump its chest for bringing 219 students back to India on Friday, is yet to react to the videos as well as the other disturbing reports coming out of Ukraine about the condition of Indians stuck there.