Over 1,000 Indian students, including those from Maharashtra, leave Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine in special train to Slovakia

NASHIK: At least 1,000 Indian students, including those from Maharashtra, studying at the Zaporizhzhia State Medical University in Ukraine heaved a sigh of relief as Indian authorities and their Ukrainian counterparts arranged a special train for them to leave Zaporizhzhia city to the border areas of Slovakia near Uzhhorod.
Siddhesh Bachchhav, one of the students from the medical university on board this train, who hails from Malegaon told TOI that it will take about 22 hours for them to reach the Slovakian border.
"All students are relieved after staying in the basement of the university hostel for over four days. Although our city was relatively calm compared to Kyiv and Kharkiv, the four days were agonizing for us since we feared Zaporizhzhia city could also have become a conflict zone anytime," Bachchhav said.
The students said that the train left 12 noon local time (3.30pm IST).
There is another batch of 250 students at the hostel of the University and they have been asked to board the following special train that has been arranged, Bachchhav said.