Several students waiting for a flight back to home

Mangaluru: Several students who made it across the border in Ukraine and who are now housed in various camps in Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Poland, continue to wait to resume their journey home.
Of the 18 students from Dakshina Kannada district enrolled in varsities in Ukraine, only four have returned so far. Mangalurean Sheikh Mohammed Taha, a first-year MBBS student, is among those still stuck in the war-ravaged country.
In a voice message, Taha said: “We are 10km outside Kharkiv. We have been stuck here in an abandoned village for the past two days. There are around 1,200 students here. Our coordinators have been arranging food and trying to evacuate us. A Ukrainian company has offered to help, but they are charging US$500 per head. Most students cannot afford it. Our coordinators have asked us to wait so that they can arrange free transport through the embassy. It may not be safe to stay at this place for much longer.”
Olin Maria Lasrado, mother of Kharkiv National University student Claton Osmond from Padil, said her son reached Slovakia on March 1 and is still in a camp there. However, there is enough food and water.
‘Girls getting prority’
“Since Indian embassy authorities are flying out women on priority, he will have to wait for some more time. There are nearly 300 Indians in the camp. After reaching Slovakia, he got a new mobile SIM and is in touch with us,” she said. He would have to travel 800km to the airport in Bratislava, the capital city of Slovakia, she said.
Sandhya, mother of Anaina Anna, a third-year MBBS student at VN Karazin Kharkiv National University, said her daughter too is waiting for a flight from Poland.