Operation Ganga: Evacuation of Indians continues, check list of flights over next few days

"This evacuation process will be at government cost," said Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringla. He added, "Specific border crossing points were identified and the MEA had deployed teams to assist in the evacuation process."

New Delhi: The Government of India has launched 'multi-pronged' Operation Ganga to evacuate our citizens stranded in Ukraine. "This evacuation process will be at government cost," said Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringla. Since the airspace in Ukraine was closed, India identified land evacuation options from Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania. "Specific border crossing points were identified and the MEA had deployed teams to assist in the evacuation process," Shringla added.

Here are some of the key points from Shringla's address:

- Our Embassy in Kyiv and our Ministry had issued a number of advisories prior to the situation developing. 4000 of our nationals had left before the conflict, pursuant to these advisories. We estimated that about 15,000 citizens were left in Ukraine.

- Border crossing to Hungary and Romania is functioning, however, the exit point to Poland is clogged due to lakhs of foreign nationals trying to escape from that point. Those who are near the borders of Hungary and Romania are guided towards their border points in phases.

- So far under operation Ganga, thousand of our citizens have been flown out of Romania and Hungary and another thousand have been evacuated from Ukraine through land routes. Flights have been organised for them.

Here is a list of flights for operation Ganga for evacuation of Indians from Ukraine via neighboring countries, informed Shringla. Check list:

List of flights for operation Ganga for Evacuation of Indians from Ukraine via neighboring countries: Foreign Secretary Harsh V Shringla pic.twitter.com/AmrOrxHeuA

— ANI (@ANI) February 27, 2022

Shringla said he called in both ambassadors of Russia and Ukraine separately and conveyed his concerns about the safety of Indian citizens. "I've shared the locations where Indian citizens are concentrated. Both ambassadors took note of our concerns and assured us of the safety of Indian citizens," the Foreign Secretary said.

India has been operating to evacuate Indians via Ukraine's neighboring countries. The Indian embassy in Ukraine on Sunday said it is continuously exploring to facilitate opening up more border transit points with neighbouring countries for the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine. In an advisory, the embassy said it is closely monitoring the developing situation, especially in the eastern regions of Ukraine, and that it is in constant touch with the authorities for the safety of Indian citizens. The embassy urged people to stay calm and safe.