Russia-Ukraine crisis: India issues hotline number for evacuated citizens in Romania

New Delhi: The Indian Embassy in Romania on Friday (March 4) notified a hotline number for students, who left Ukraine and are in Bucharest, waiting to be evacuated to India. 

Taking to Twitter, the embassy wrote, “Indian students who are still in Bucharest may please get in touch with the Embassy on hotline number +40 725964976 for evacuation by flights leaving in the next two days.” 

Indian students who are still in Bucharest may please get in touch with the Embassy on hotline number +40 725964976 for evacuation by flights leaving in the next two days @opganga @MEAIndia @JM_Scindia — India in Romania (@eoiromania) March 4, 2022

The government said that a total of 5,245 Indians have been airlifted from Romania to India till March 3. 

Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that more than 20,000 Indians have left the Ukraine border since the advisories. “There are more people, but it's reassuring to see that this many people have left Ukraine,” MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a media brief. 

Bagchi said that India is making efforts to provide bus to those stuck in eastern Ukraine, especially Kharkiv and Pisochyn. 

“Highest attention on the eastern Ukraine particularly Kharkiv and Pisochin. We have managed to get some buses there. 5 buses already operational, more buses later in the evening; 900-1000 Indians stranded in Pisochin and 700+ in Sumy. We are concerned about Sumy," ANI quoted him as saying. 

The MEA informed that 16 flights are scheduled for the next 24 hours, including IAF's C-17 aircraft to bring back stranded nationals. 

On Thursday, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MCA) had said that over 6,200 Indians have returned from Ukraine through special civilian flights and more than 7,400 Indians are expected to arrive in the next two days. India has deployed civilian planes as well as Indian Air Force planes to bring back students stranded in war-hit Ukraine. 

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(With agency inputs)

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