Indian Student Killed in Russia-Ukraine War
An Indian student was killed in Kharkiv, Ukraine, as the country faces an invasion by Russian forces.
Over half a million people have fled Ukraine while hundreds have died. Last week, India said some 20,000 Indians remain stranded in Ukraine. India has launched "Operation Ganga" to evacuate Indians from Ukraine. However, evacuation from Ukraine has proven to be challenging as the Ukrainian airspace is closed and no flights are allowed to take off from Ukraine. Indians stuck in Ukraine are hence being evacuated from Ukraine’s western border so they can be flown out through neighbouring countries. Yesterday India’s ninth flight brought back 218 Indians. The flight took off from Bucharest in Romania. Indians—and other persons of colour—stuck in Ukraine have complained of racist treatment by Ukrainian authorities, as they are allegedly not being allowed to leave on priority. They say that other Ukrainian people are being allowed to leave instead.
Yesterday afternoon the Indian embassy in Ukraine urged all Indians to urgently leave Kyiv (Capital of Ukraine) "preferably by available trains or through any other means available." Experts say that this is because the Indian government was expecting a dangerous attack on Kyiv. On 28 February, Russia and Ukraine held peace talks but the discussion was of no use. Yesterday Russian military bombed Kharkiv, causing dozens of civilian deaths. In very sad news, Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar (20) was killed in Kharkiv during the Russian military’s attacks. He was a final year medical student at the Kharkiv National Medical University and was from Chalageri, Karnataka. Pooja Praharaj, a student coordinator in Kharkiv spread the news about his death. She said, ‘He had only gone to get food. For others in the hostel, we provided food, but he stayed in a flat just behind the Governor's House. He had been standing in the queue for an hour or two as he had no food to eat. Suddenly there was an airstrike that blew up the Governor's House and he was killed. We came to know about his death when a Ukrainian woman picked up his phone and told us he was dead. Naveen's friend Shridharan Gopalakrishnan gave a different version of how he was killed.
He said, "Naveen was shot dead around 10.30 am Ukrainian time today. He was standing in the queue before a grocery shop when the Russian army fired at people. We have no information about his body. None of us was able to visit the hospital, probably where it is kept now. The Indian government has failed to evacuate the students stuck in Ukraine.’ The External Affairs Ministry confirmed the news about Naveen’s death.
