An Indian student was killed yesterday in shelling in Ukraine, the foreign ministry said as it urged Russia and Ukraine to secure safe passage for thousands of citizens stranded in the middle of war. 21-year-old Naveen Shekharappa, a final year medical student from Karnataka’s Haveri, died when Russian soldiers blew up a government building on Tuesday.
“With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning. The Ministry is in touch with his family. We convey our deepest condolences to the family,” tweeted the External Affairs Ministry.
He added that Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla “was calling in the ambassadors of Russia and Ukraine to reiterate India’s demand for urgent safe passage for Indian nationals whoa re still in Kharkiv and cities in other conflict zones”. It is imperative that Russia and Ukraine respond to the need for safe passage urgently, said sources.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to the student’s father and called his fourth meeting in three days on the Ukraine crisis. He had earlier despatched four ministers to Ukraine’s border countries to coordinate evacuations.
In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city, videos showed extensive damage from Russian military assault after it launched an invasion last Thursday. The central square of the city was shelled by advancing forces, who hit a government building, this morning.
Naveen Shekharappa was standing in a queue outside a grocery store when he was hit.