A student from Kerala stuck in Ukraine earned lots of praises for his struggle to return with his pet, who will finally land in India soon. It was a great challenge for the 21-year-old boy named Akhil Radhakrishnan to not only make sure that his life was safe from the war-hit Ukraine where he has been studying in Kharkiv National Medical University since last two years but also to ensure that his pet also reaches India safely. The pet was a cat, who was handed over to Akhil by his senior in college four months ago and since then the two have been inseparable.
Akhil shared, “She (the pet cat) is very lovely and I can’t separate from her and I am glad that the Embassy of India in Ukraine is now allowing me to take her along,” Akhil said while heaving a huge sigh of relief. It has been very difficult for the last two weeks for this young student who was trying to come from safely to Budapest. “I got onto a train from a car and reached Kyiv. Then, I took a bus to come to Chop…. By taking another two trains, I managed to reach Budapest.”
The train ride certainly was not easy says Akhil. He had to sit in front of the bathroom. Though the travel was tough but what comforted him was coming back home safe. Akhil is now waiting to board the Indian Air Force flight to India from where he will head back to his home in Kerala with the love of his life his pet cat in town.
The government has also deployed ‘special envoys’ to Ukraine’s neighbouring countries to coordinate and oversee the evacuation process of Indian nationals. Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri is looking after the evacuation efforts in Hungary, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju in Slovakia, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in Romania and Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways and Civil Aviation Gen VK Singh in Poland. Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions – Donetsk and Luhansk – as independent entities.
