Russia-Ukraine crisis: Indian govt to bear medical cost of student shot in Kyiv

'Our embassy is in touch with the family,' said a spokesperson

A Staff Reporter

Published: Sat 5 Mar 2022, 9:03 AM

Last updated: Sat 5 Mar 2022, 9:09 AM

The Indian government will bear the medical expenses of Harjot Singh, a student in Ukraine, who sustained bullet injuries and is now at a hospital in Kyiv, said Arindam Bagchi, the spokesperson of the External Affairs Ministry in Delhi.

“Our embassy is in touch with the family,” he said.

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“We are trying to ascertain his exact medical status, including his readiness to be able to move.” Singh was hit by four bullets, including one in the chest, as he and two friends were getting into a taxi in Lviv in western Ukraine.

The spokesperson said that three transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force carried six tonnes of relief materials, including medicines, for Ukraine on Friday. They will provide help to people (including Indian students) from Ukraine who have left for Romania, Poland and Slovakia.

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Responding to media queries on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claim that 3,000 Indians were being held hostage at the Kharkiv station by the Ukranian military, Bagchi said:

“We issued a statement yesterday. I clarified it again. I’m not aware of any Indian being held hostage. I mean, unless you have some information that I don’t, they are having difficulty getting out because of the security situation in some places, particularly in Sumy and in Kharkiv. But I haven’t heard anybody being held hostage.”