Vishakhapatanam: Ever since the buzz about a likely Ukraine-Russia war spread with the US also in the picture, a sense of worry has gripped several Telugu families that have their children and others studying or working in the conflict zone.
Nearly 20,000 Indians study in Ukraine. Over 1,000 are from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana while the bulk of the students from India are from Kerala and Punjab.
Deccan Chronicle got in touch with some Telugu students in Ukraine to have a feel of the life and conditions they face there.
MBBS student Korthiwada Ajith from Kharkiv National Medical University, who hails from Hyderabad, said that the Russian border was nearly 35km away from his place. Nearly a lakh of Russian troops have been marched to areas near the border while Russian president Vladimir Putin talked over phone to US president Joe Biden on Sunday.
“Some of our group-mates and juniors have already started packing their bags and returning to their native countries including India and Israel. One of my juniors recently booked a flight to Warangal. Students like me are currently observing the evolving situation here,” he said.
He said, “The Indian Embassy asked us to fill up forms in Google sheets to collate information in case a sudden evacuation is required,” Ajith said.
"The studies would not be affected even if we have to go home as the classes are currently held online due to the Covid19 spread in Ukraine," he said.
Local news there hinted that there could be a suspension of air service over Ukraine on Monday.
Student Bheesetty Aditya Srinivas from Visakhapatnam said “The situation is cool at present. But we don’t know what will happen in the next hour. The scenario can worsen overnight. We are awaiting the updates. My parents suggested that I do whatever is best based on what other batch-mates too feel.”
TCS software engineer Satish Kumar from Hyderabad, whose son Vishu studied at Lviv City, said, “I sent emails to our embassy at Ukraine to know about the latest about the war and of Indians there. There was no reply to my mails. Proper communication is important for us to get to know about our people there.”
Indians go over to Ukraine for studies because it is cost-effective compared to other foreign universities. The degrees they get there are recognised both in Europe and India. Some of the popular fields of study include medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, technology science and civil engineering.
Why a Russia-Ukraine war?
Russia and Ukraine were members of the erstwhile Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR). After 1991, Ukraine became an independent country. Russia, which retained old capital Moscow, remains a super power. It wants to prevent Ukraine from being an ally of the West. Russia fears that if Ukraine joins the US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as is now planned, Russia will lose its influence over Ukraine. Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council with veto power.
