-By ArdorComm News Network
March 15, 2022
S Jaishankar, the External Affairs Minister, will make a statement in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday about the situation in Ukraine and the status of Indian students being evacuated as part of Operation Ganga.
In the second part of Parliament’s Budget Session, the Opposition slammed the government for delaying the rescue of students trapped in the conflict zone and criticized the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for releasing “vague” advisories.
Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu praised the federal and state governments for rising to the challenge of evacuating Indian students. Later, around zero hour, members expressed concern about the future of students from Ukraine.
- Ravindra Kumar, a TDP MP, said that now that the students’ safety and security had been assured, the government should take the required steps to protect their future by consulting all stakeholders.
“Students who returned from Ukraine owing to the war are in a really terrible situation,” Congress MP K.C. Venugopal said. Their future is a major concern for their family. “The government must explain what steps it is taking to accommodate medical students who were compelled to return from Ukraine midway through their degree,” he said.
On February 24, the Indian government began Operation Ganga to bring back trapped Indians in Ukraine. Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent four central ministers, Kiren Rijiju, Hardeep Singh Puri, Jyotiraditya Scindia, and General VK Singh, to coordinate rescue operations in various countries.
In more than 80 special evacuation flights, India has been able to rescue over 20,000 stranded citizens. Buses and trains carried Indians to Ukraine’s western borders, where they were flown back to India through Bucharest, Budapest, Suceava, and Warsaw.
Over 600 students were evacuated from Sumy, and the last group was taken back to India via Poland.
Meanwhile, India has decided to relocate its embassy in Ukraine to Poland for the time being. “In view of the rapidly deteriorating security situation in Ukraine, including attacks in the western parts of the country,” the Ministry of External Affairs said, “it has been decided that the Indian Embassy in Ukraine will be temporarily relocated to Poland.”
On Monday, the second part of the Budget session began and will end on April 8. In addition to conducting legislative work, the Rajya Sabha is expected to spend more than 64 hours debating issues of public importance.
Source: ANI