We are mentally and physically exhausted: Indian students stuck near Russian border

After Kharkiv, desperation seeps in among Indian students in the city of Sumy near the Russian border, who are the longest distance from safety

I am only 20 years old. I don’t want to die. I want to live. Please airlift me from here,” pleaded Mohammad Faisal, a student stranded in the Ukrainian city of Sumy. He and other Indian students stuck at their hostel told mid-day that they have run out of food and are now forced to drink tap water.

They were surviving on stale chapatis, but even that is over now. “We cannot describe our pains in words,” said Mohammad Mehtab Raza, Faisal's senior. After running out of filtered drinking water, they had arranged soda water, but that's over, too. “Now, we are drinking tap water, which we use for washing our dishes. Many of us have fallen sick, and there is no medicine as well,” said Raza, a native of East Champaran district of Bihar.

Raza said they don’t even remember now the number of times they have to run to the bunker in a day

Faisal, who hails from Bihar’s Motihari district, said, “It is nauseating to drink tap water. It tastes bitter and stinks, but we are left with no other option.” “Above all, our immunity will take a hit soon, as we have nothing to eat. We are very likely to get water-borne diseases. Being a medical student, we know how alarming it is,” he said, adding that they haven't slept since Russia started bombing Ukraine about a week back.

Back home, Faisal's parents are panicking and scared for his safety. “After every 5 minutes, my mother calls me to know if I am well. During video calls, she checks if my limbs are intact, if I have faced any bullet injuries, etc. They are desperately asking me to return home, but I am stuck here and cant dare to step out as we all have been hearing gruelling sounds of indiscriminate firings and bombings,” he said.

Faisal said that he has to lie to his parents that he is in a better condition. “If I tell them the real picture of Sumy, they will get even more frightened, although they have been following the news [about the invasion],” he added.

More than 600 medical students from India are yet to be evacuated from Sumy. “All the students here are stuck in their hostels. We can’t move out,” said Faisal, who had planned to come to India on February 25. However, a day before, the Russian forces started the invasion of Ukraine. mid-day spoke to dozens of students to understand their ground realities. Many of them didn't wish to be named fearing problems during evacuation or their parents getting to know of their situation.

‘Fear of being bombed’ 

They all have one thing in common, the fear of coming under attack. “Every second we fear the next target would be our hostel,” they said. “There are armed men on the roads. The entire situation is so scary,” said Faisal.

Mohammad Mehtab Raza eating one of the last stale chapatis, in his hostel room in Sumy

Raza told mid-day that when the air raid siren goes off, they have to rush to the bunker. “We can't even remember how many times we have to rush to the bunker in a day. And once the threat subsides, we return to our rooms. We have not slept since the past few days,” said Raza. The bunker is completely messy and there is no mat to sit or sleep on. We have to also keep ourselves protected in the bone-chilling weather. The temperature here is -1 degrees Celsius,” he added.

“We are left with no food, no drinking water, no sleep...ATMs are also running short of cash. We can only hear gunshots now,” said Raza, a fourth-year student in Sumy State Medical University. “Most of us are now physically and emotionally exhausted, and do not even get alarmed at the sound of air raid sirens. We can't go on running from hostel room to bunker to hostel room again and again and again…” said a tired Faisal. 

“Local politicians made a beeline to my hometown in Bihar after they learnt that I am stuck in Ukraine. They wanted to connect with me, so that they can make the video viral to gain political mileage. The opportunist politicians should give space to my parents and family members who are anxiously waiting for my safe arrival home,” said Faisal. Other students stranded in Sumy told mid-day the nearest border is with Russia. “It is very far and we can’t think of stepping out as we might get killed. Also, we don’t have cash to bear the transportation cost,” said a student.

‘Please rescue us’

“We all request the government of India to please rescue us, as we cannot travel 1,500 km from here [Sumy] to reach the border because it's not safe. We need some security to reach the border. Our lives are at stake. Please help us,” said Raza.

Emotionally Exhausted

Mohammad Faisal
‘Most of us are now physically and emotionally exhausted, and do not even get alarmed at the sound of air raid sirens. We can’t go on running from hostel room to bunker to hostel room again and again and again’

Mohammad Mehtab Raza
‘We all request the government of India to please rescue us, as we cannot travel 1,500 km from here [Sumy] to reach the border because it’s not safe. We need some security to reach the border. Our lives are at stake. Please help us’

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