Girl from Chennai stuck in Kharkiv, family spends sleepless nights

CHENNAI: When Russian planes bombed Kharkiv, B Ashwini’s family in Chennai spent sleepless nights. The 22-year-old girl was among 350 students from India at the V N Karazin National University in the Ukrainian city.
Her father G Baskar (47), a cab driver, had sold his car, land and the family’s jewellery so that Ashwini could pursue her dream of becoming a doctor.She had secured more than 90% in her Class X and XII state board exams but couldn't crack NEET.
B Ashwini
"Back in 2017-18, the state government did not run many training centres and we did not have the money to send her to a private coaching centre. We could see her struggling to cope with the depression. And then came the news of Anitha's suicide. We decided to go the extra mile to fulfill her dream," said B Ajith Kumar, Ashwini's brother.
A Coimbatore-based private educational consultancy promised that the total cost of her study will not cross ₹20 lakh. But this sum was not even enough for the first two years. By selling their valuables and with the help of donations, Ashwini continued her studies. "She would need at least ₹10,000 every month. But we were able to give her only ₹5,000. She used to skip a meal every day to manage her expenses," said Ajith Kumar, a national-level hockey player who gave up his sport to support the family.
Ashwini had to discontinue her course in 2020 as she did not have money to pay the tuition fee. She returned to Tamil Nadu for a year. Then she learnt that the Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation Limited (TAHDCO) gave loans to students.
The state agency granted her ₹7.5 lakh as loan in two installments. With this, she returned to Ukraine nine months back. But now TAHDCO wants a surety from a gazetted officer or a deposit of ₹2 lakh. "If we had money or access to people in power, why would we allow her to discontinue her studies, " asked Ajith, who is worried about her fourth year fees now.
After five tension filled days, the family finally learnt that Ashwini had moved out of Kharkiv to the relative safety of the city of Lviv. Her parents and brother are keeping their fingers crossed.