16,000 Indians brought back from Ukraine, says Union Minister

Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said the Centre was able to bring back around 16,000 Indians from the war-torn Ukraine and hope to evacuate the rest in days to come.

Union Minister of State for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan, on Monday said the Centre was able to bring back around 16,000 Indians from the war-torn Ukraine so far and hope to evacuate the rest in days to come.

Muraleedharan, who was in Kerala on a short trip, told the media that currently, around 3,000 Indians were in neighbouring countries of Ukraine and efforts are on to bring them back to India.

"Out of the almost 20,000 Indian citizens including students in Ukraine, we have been able to evacuate more than 16,000 till now. Around 3,000 Indians are still in the neighbouring countries of Ukraine. In the north-eastern province of Ukraine, Sumy, there are around 600 students," Muraleedharan noted.

He said the Indian embassy has given the latest advisory for students to be prepared to shift at short notice.

"The embassy is making all arrangements to evacuate them. Since the conflict started, we have been able to evacuate almost 80 per cent of Indians from there. In the coming days, the rest of those stranded will also be brought back."

The Union Minister also said there were indications that a ceasefire may be declared in four cities of Ukraine and India was continuing engagement with both sides to ensure the safe passage of the citizens.