Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday has urged the centre for the safe repatriation of Odias trapped in Ukraine amid a massive Russian military offensive against the European country.
“Chief Minister Patnaik spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah over telephone this morning and requested him for safe evacuation of stranded Odia students and labourers at the war-torn Ukraine.
Union Home Minister Shah assured the chief minister that the Union Government is in touch with the Ukraine government and is working to bring back students and labourers from Ukraine at the earliest”, a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) informed on Friday.
There are reports of more than 1,600 people, mostly medical students, from Odisha left stranded at the conflict zone, frantically waiting to be evacuated to the safety of their homeland.
The families of these people back home are extremely anxious about the safety of their loved ones.
The State government is yet to ascertain the exact number of Odias still trapped in Ukraine. However unofficial reports said there was an exodus of more than 1,300 students to Ukraine for studying medical courses. Majority of them however preferred to stay back despite escalating tension prior to yesterday’s Russian invasion. The number of returnees must not exceed 100-mark, the report added.