Ukraine war witness account: Indian students in Kharkiv put up a fight to reach borders for evacuation

As the situation in war-torn Ukraine is turning for the worse, Indian students stuck in Kharkiv have been advised to move to Pesochin according to the latest advisory issued by the embassy in Ukraine. Russia is pounding Kharkiv as part of its ongoing invasion.

Pesochin is located towards the outskirts of Kharkiv but reaching the location, which is currently a safe haven for the students, is also not safe enough, according to a student who spoke to WION.

Amid the Russian bombardment and before the advisory, the students were trying to board trains to reach Lviv and get closer to the border but were being pushed out.

"We were not being allowed to board trains, we were being pushed, not even the metros were safe for us now," said Khwaish Thapa, a medical student from Kharkiv.

Along with Indian students, there are Ukrainian nationals and others taking shelter in these metros, hoping to get a seat on every passing train.

After the advisory, the students pulled together in groups and reached Pesochin to take shelter in bunkers. Unable to establish contact through helplines, they are now waiting for the next advisory for the instructions.

Making SOS calls and seeking help, the 19-year-old student said, “Our local contractor has brought us to a safe place. We are a group of 10 students. We are told we will be staying here for the night. This seems safer than Kharkiv.”

Many students are still trying to reach a safe place away from Kharkiv which is about an hour away from Russian borders. As the Russian army continues to go brute in the country, students wait to be evacuated and brought back to India.

Those living towards the western region of the country have been moving towards neighbouring borders of Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Poland. These are the borders where the Indian government has been carrying out the evacuations. Kharkiv is in the east and closer to Russian border.