The war on Ukraine claimed an Indian youth’s life on Tuesday as a 21-year-old medical student from Haveri district in Karnataka was killed in Russian shelling in Kharkiv city. According to officials from the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Centre (KSNDMC) -- the nodal agency coordinating with the Ministry of External Affairs for the safe evacuation of Karnataka students -- the deceased, Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar, was killed during early morning shelling by Russian forces.
Naveen was a fourth-year student of the Kharkiv National Medical University in Kharkiv. He went out to buy food and was in a queue in front of a grocery store, when he was killed, apparently as a result shelling by Russian Armed Forces targeting an administrative building in the city.
A local woman picked up his mobile phone and conveyed to his friends that he had been killed and his body had been taken to the morgue of the Kharkiv National Medical University. “Sudden blast in city centre Kharkiv with casualties. We lost an Indian student who was nearby & (and) was in queue to buy food stuffs,” Pooja Praharaj, a student coordinator, tweeted from Kharkiv.
She also posted a video of an explosion in the city.
Kharkiv has been witnessing intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces over the past few days.
“Naveen, a native of Chalageri in Haveri district died during the shelling. His friends revealed that he had ventured out of the bunker to visit a nearby store to buy essentials,” said Manoj Rajan, Nodal Officer and Commissioner, KSNDMC.
Even as the state government led by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai was making efforts by coordinating with the MEA for the safe evacuation of Kannadiga students, Rajan appealed to students not to lose courage and stay safely in the bunkers.
“It (the death) is a matter of grief. But we would like to tell all the other parents to have courage. We will put all our efforts to safely bring our students back.”
Bommai and Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to Naveen’s father Shekar and offered condolences to the family.
Rajan also explained that the state government has been making all possible arrangements to bring Naveen’s body back and said Bommai has personally spoken to the External Affairs minister and is in constant touch with embassy officials through the MEA to bring Naveen’s body home soon. In New Delhi, the envoys of Moscow and Kyiv to New Delhi were summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and asked to urgently ensure safe passage for all Indians.
Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla told journalists in New Delhi late in the evening that the Government of India was in touch with local authorities and would try to bring back his mortal remains.
Modi had yet another meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and other senior officials to review the progress of ‘Operation Ganga’, which was launched to evacuate the citizens of India from war-torn Ukraine. He expressed anguish over death of Naveen and also spoke to the deceased student’s father Shekarappa Gyanagouda.
Though the Modi government has been evacuating citizens of India from western Ukraine through neighbouring Romania, Poland, Hungary and Slovak Republic, it could not yet help nearly 4,000 – mostly students – stranded in Kharkiv, Sumy and other eastern cities of the country, due to intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
“It’s been 6 (six) days we are begging our Indian govt (Government) @PMOIndia @DrSJaishankar to help us, they didn’t even make a single move. Today one died, tomorrow 100 and day after 1000. Are you waiting to take our 4000 bodies by your evacuation plan?” Praharaj, herself a medical graduate, posted on Twitter, drawing attention of the Prime Minister and the External Affairs Minister to the plight of the Indians, spending days and nights in bunkers and other shelters.
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