Operation Ganga: Three IAF aircraft take off to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine

New Delhi [India], March 2 : Three Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft have been pressed in service since Wednesday morning for evacuation of the stranded Indians in Ukraine amid tension with Russia.
Two IAF aircraft have taken off from Hindon airbase for Hungary and Romania, while one C-17 Globemaster took off at 4 am earlier today for Romania under 'Operation Ganga'.
These aircraft are carrying tents, blankets and other humanitarian aid and will also be bringing back Indians stranded in Ukraine.
Another IAF aircraft is scheduled to fly to Poland to facilitate the evacuation of stranded Indians.
This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Tuesday to review the efforts to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine and asked the Indian Air Force to join the evacuation efforts under 'Operation Ganga'.
Sources said that leveraging the capacities of the Air Force will ensure that more people can be evacuated in a shorter time frame and it will also help to deliver humanitarian aid more efficiently.
After Russia's forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, the Government of India launched 'Operation Ganga' to bring back stranded Indian nationals from the conflict-torn Ukraine. As part of the 'Operation Ganga' mission, special flights are being operated to facilitate returns of the stranded Indians free of cost. The first such evacuation flight carrying 219 Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine landed in Mumbai on February 26. Several such flights have landed in the country so far.
The 24x7 control centres have been set up to assist in the evacuation of Indian nationals through the border crossing points with Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia. A new route has been opened through Moldova and an MEA team is also stationed there. The team will assist in the evacuation of Indians through Romania.
A dedicated Twitter Account (@opganga) has been set up to assist Operation Ganga. The Indian Embassy in Kyiv has advised Indian citizens against moving to any of the border checkpoints without prior coordination with government officials at border posts.
In a bid to energize the evacuation efforts, the Government of India appointed four special envoys who will oversee evacuation operations of stranded Indians in Ukraine's neighbouring countries. Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri will oversee evacuation efforts in Hungary, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju in Slovakia, Gen (retd) VK Singh in Poland while Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia will be going to Romania and will also go to Moldova.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has held several meetings so far to review the ongoing efforts under Operation Ganga to bring back Indians stranded in Ukraine. He has also said that India will help people from neighbouring countries and developing countries who are stranded in Ukraine and may seek assistance.
Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla informed on Tuesday that all Indian nationals have left Kyiv and nearly 60 per cent of Indians in Ukraine have left the country so far. He said that out of an estimated 20,000 Indian citizens in Ukraine, 60 per cent have left the country since the first advisory was issued by the government."Of the remaining 40 per cent, roughly half remain in the conflict zone in Kharkiv and the other half have either reached the western border of Ukraine or are heading towards the western border. They are generally out of conflict areas," Shringla said.
Briefing the media about the evacuation of Indians including students from Ukraine in the wake of Russian military operations, Shringla informed that over the next three days, 26 flights have been scheduled to bring out Indian citizens. "Apart from Bucharest and Budapest, airports in Poland and the Slovak Republic will also be used," he said.
An Indian student, Naveen Shekharappa died in Ukraine's Kharkiv following shelling in the area on Tuesday. He hailed from the Haveri district in Karnataka. PM Modi has spoken to the father of Naveen Shekharappa to express his condolences.