Around 1500 Indian students return to Ukraine, refuse to leave despite govt advisory

Around 1500 Indian students return to Ukraine, refuse to leave despite govt advisory

Last Updated Oct - 27 - 2022, 10:06 AM | Source : TOI | Visitors : 40

The development comes a day after the Indian embassy in Ukraine asked all Indians to leave the country immediately in view of increasing hostilities.

Around 1,500 medical students, who came back to India from Ukraine in February following the Russian military offensive, have returned to the war-torn nation despite the risk. These students, studying in different medical colleges in Ukraine, have somehow managed to reach back to pursue their studies as there was no solution in India despite waiting for months. The development comes a day after the Indian embassy in Ukraine asked all Indians to leave the country immediately in view of increasing hostilities.

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"In continuation of the advisory issued by the embassy on October 19, all Indian citizens in Ukraine are advised to immediately leave Ukraine by available means," the embassy said.

Upon their arrival in India, the only apprehension these medical students had was about their future. In September, the Centre told the Supreme Court that Ukraine-returned students cannot be accommodated in Indian Universities in the absence of any provision under the National Medical Commission Act (NMCA), 2019.

The government justified its decision by stating that giving any such relaxation would seriously hamper the standards of medical education in the country. Currently, the top court has listed the pleas filed by Ukraine-returned students to complete their studies in India for November 1.

Some students who have returned to Ukraine to continue their medical education spoke to India Today and explained why they do not intend to leave the war-torn country.

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“We are not going to leave after returning here just a few months ago, having faced all sorts of odds. We will only go back to India after completing our studies or in coffins, in case we die in the ongoing turmoil,” said one of the students in Ukraine, who agreed to be identified only by his last name Sharma. The students say they have ‘no other option’ but to remain there because the Indian government had already made it clear they won’t be able to accommodate them in medical institutions back in the country.

“The National Medical Commission (NMC), which monitors medical education in India, has said they won’t allow a degree obtained through online classes. Due to all these factors, we were left with no option but to go back to Ukraine to complete the course offline,” Sharma said. Another student, who identified himself as Singh said,” We had come here around three months ago from India after taking a flight for Rs 70,000, which in normal circumstances is led than half the amount.”

Ashish Nautiyal, a medical student who is attending online classes from home in Uttarakhand said, “We are waiting for November 1, when the Supreme Court will hear a petition by some of the students, urging the government to declare the online medical studies valid.”

Ravi Kumar, a resident of Gaya district in Bihar and a medical student at Vinitsia Medical College in Ukraine said that he managed to reach back to the conflict-hit nation via Moldova from India. While showing his hostel near the medical college, Ravi said that the students hear five to seven air sirens on a daily basis.

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He also said that students have to buy food at an extremely high price, but have no other options as they have to pursue their careers.

"Our family is worried and they often say that we are not telling them the true picture. But what option do we have? We come from very poor families and cannot afford medical studies in private medical colleges of India," Ravi added.

Another student, Mohan Kumar, a resident of Gorakhpur, appreciated the Indian government for launching "Operation Ganga". He, however, added that even after waiting for months, there was no solution since the National Medical Council was not ready to accommodate the Ukraine-returned students in Indian medical colleges.

Mohan also said that around 300 students have reached Vinitsia Medical College and speculated that there are around 1,500 students who have reached Ukraine via different roots. He also said that he would not return to India until he has a medical degree in his hand.

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