2 Air India planes bring home 490 Indians from Ukraine

A student is hugged by a family member on her return from Ukraine, in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Pic/PTI

Air India's two evacuation flights, one from the Romanian capital Bucharest and another from Hungarian capital Budapest, carrying 490 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine landed at the Delhi airport on Sunday morning, government officials said.

Emotions ran high at the Delhi airport as the anxious wait of several parents to reunite with their children ended in joy. On the other hand, scores of parents, whose children are still stuck in the violence-hit country, are having sleepless nights as their children find themselves hiding in bunkers when sirens buzz.
India on Saturday began the evacuation of its stranded citizens amid the Russian military offensive in Ukraine, with the first evacuation flight, AI1944, bringing back 219 people from Bucharest to Mumbai in the evening.

The second evacuation flight, AI1942, departed from Bucharest with 250 Indian citizens and landed at the Delhi airport around 2.45 am on Sunday, the officials said. Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia welcomed the evacuees of AI1942 flight at the Delhi airport by handing out roses to them. The third flight AI1940, departed from Budapest with 240 Indian nationals and landed at the Delhi airport around 9.20 am on Sunday, the officials noted.

Indian nationals, who reached the Ukraine-Romania border and Ukraine-Hungary border, were taken to Bucharest and Budapest, respectively, by road with the assistance of Indian government officials so that they could be evacuated in these Air India flights.

The government is not charging the rescued citizens for the evacuation flights. Scindia said approximately 13,000 Indians are stranded in Ukraine as of now. The Indian Embassy in Ukraine said on Saturday that Indian citizens in Ukraine should not move to any of the border posts without coordination with the Indian government officials.

13,000
No. of Indian students in Ukraine as of now

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