Visakhapatnam: For next few months, Telugu students have no plans to return

Visakhapatnam: Telugu students who were stuck in war-hit Ukraine have gradually started returning to their home. Ever since Russia announced a 'special military operation' against Ukraine, the situation has turned out to be worse for the students stranded there. With limited food, water and other essential supplies, a number of students studying in the crisis-hit country experienced a host of ordeals by putting up at the bunkers.

With eight Telugu students belonging to various districts arriving in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday night, they shared their experiences with The Hans India. Although they have evacuated safely from the country, the students now express fear over another issue. Already, two years of their academic life have gone for a toss due to Covid-19 pandemic.

However, they are now scared how long the ongoing war would distance them from their respective universities. Even if the situation gets better in the following weeks, students say that they don't dare to step into Ukraine for the next few months. "It took us 16 hours to reach the railway station through a private vehicle.

We waited overnight to get train tickets in order to reach the border. We will wait for two to three months before taking a call on returning to Ukraine," says S Durgesh Nandini, a third year medico. Owing to pandemic, the students have already missed a large portion of their academic months. Even during the first and second waves of the corona pandemic, the medicos mentioned that a major part of their classes were carried out virtually. "Even surgeries performed in the nights were attended online," Nandini adds.

Sharing her woes, another student V Swethasri, says, "Three months back, our first semester began. Though bombings were witnessed in 200-km radius, we were able to return to our hometown safely. It is only three months since the first semester has commenced and we appeal to the university officials to restart the course afresh."

Since there is no clarity on their return, the first year students hope that the institution will commence the academic course from the beginning. Even if the university officials could not cater to their needs, the medicos say that they are ready to take the extra load to complete their studies successfully. On Thursday, six students belonging to Vizag and another five from other districts returned from Ukraine.