All 694 Indian students stuck in Sumy moved out

New Delhi: The evacuation of more than 600 Indian students stranded in Ukraine's Sumy has started. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told reporters that all 694 Indian students, who were stranded in Sumy, have left for Poltava in buses.

"Last night, I checked with the control room, 694 Indian students were remaining in Sumy. Today, they have all left in buses for Poltava," Puri told the reporters.

A medical student at the Sumy University, who did not wish to be identified, confirmed that buses have arrived, and students have started boarding the buses. "We have been told that we will go to Poltava. I am praying that we reach a safe zone and this misery is over," he said.

The foreign ministry tweeted that from Poltova, they will board trains to western Ukraine.

The students were shifted as part of evacuation of civilians from Sumy and the town of Irpin near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv through a green corridor to Poltova, a city in central Ukraine. 

The foreign ministry of Ukraine tweeted a video of the evacuation of Sumy citizens, saying "We call on Russia to agree on other humanitarian corridors in Ukraine".

The students have been waiting for evacuation for days. On Saturday, unable to cope any longer with the bitter cold, depleting food and water supplies, the students shared videos saying they have decided to begin the risky journey to the Russian border 50 km away.

But they were dissuaded by the government, which contacted them and asked that they "avoid unnecessary risks". A plan to evacuate them fell through as Ukraine rejected a Russian plan for a humanitarian corridor to Russia and Belarus.