Our Correspondent
Kohima, Feb. 26 (EMN): A day after Nagaland’s Home department said that there was "no report" of citizens from the state being stranded in the war-torn Ukraine, it has emerged that a medical student from the state is among the 20,000 odd Indian nationals stuck in the country due to the Russian military offensive.
Machi Yirackchang from Poilwa village under Peren district, who is pursuing medical studies at I. Horbachevsky Ternopil National Medical University, was stranded in Ukraine’s Ternopil city. He is in his fourth year.
When Eastern Mirror contacted on Saturday, Yirackchang said he was travelling.
Meanwhile, his elder brother Mirhu Terieng told this newspaper that his brother was on his way to Poland to catch a flight to India.
He could not board a flight to India as the airspace in Ukraine was closed on Thursday owing to the crisis. So, he along with other Indian students studying in the city boarded a bus on Friday evening (on their own arrangement) for Poland, Terieng said citing information provided by his brother.
The bus had not reached Poland as on Saturday morning, the time Terieng last contacted his brother.
'The city (Ternopil) he is studying is closer to Poland and they are heading there for safety,' the brother added.
Terieng said that they were yet to inform their parents about Yirackchang returning home as it might make them anxious.
'We just informed that the situation in Ukraine is unusual and told them (parents) to pray,’ he said, adding that he too was worried about the safety of his brother.
He further informed that he is getting updates from his brother on a daily basis.
Kudibe Terieng, another cousin of Yirackchang, also said that back home, family members were worried about him because of the war.
However, he said that he was relieved after learning that his cousin had already moved out from Ukraine.