India’s National tricolour came to the rescue of not only the stranded Indians but also those hailing from Pakistan and Turkey to cross into the neighbouring countries of Ukraine.
As the Russian attack on Ukraine continues undeterred, stranded Indians were asked to leave the war-torn nation using any available mode of transport.
Indian students arrived in the city of Bucharest in Romania from Ukraine with the Indian tricolour unfurled in front of their bus, and it helped them to cross various check posts across the ex-Soviet nation, a student from the group told ANI.
The students were headed to the Romanian city of Bucharest to avail the evacuation flights sent from India under ‘Operation Ganga’. Air India, Spice Jet and Indigo are a part of the special operation to retrieve all Indians stuck in Ukraine in the wake of the escalating offensive by Russia.
With minimum access to life-saving supplies, the visiting Indian students struggled to reach the market after the Indian embassy announced that possessing an Indian flag would help individuals stay safe under the given circumstances.
“We were told in Ukraine that being Indians and carrying Indian flag, we won’t have any problems,” said a medical student who arrived from Odesa in South Ukraine.
“I ran to the market brought some colour sprays and curtains. I then cut the curtain and spray-painted it to make the Indian colour,” another student in the group said.
The batch of stranded Indian students also included some Pakistani and Turkish nationals. The smart move by Indian students helped their neighbouring nationals to pass checkpoints.
“The Turkish and Pakistani students were also using the Indian flag.” a student said, adding that the Indian flag was of great help to the Pakistani, Turkish students.
“We booked the bus from Odesa and came to the Molodova border. The Moldovan citizens were very nice. They provided us with free accommodation and taxis and buses to get to Romania,” he added.
The students also expressed their gratitude to the Indian embassy officials who arranged for their food and shelter as they awaited their flights back to India.