United Sikhs' volunteers support Ukraine war refugees
Darpan News Desk IANS, 25 Mar, 2022 11:14 AM
New Delhi, March 25 (IANS) United Sikhs, the United Nations affiliated human rights and advocacy organisation, has started relief work and humanitarian aid in Ukraine for more than three weeks, serving the emergency needs of refugees escaping the war.
United Sikhs is the only organisation of the Sikhs that has reached ground zero in the war-torn Ukraine and its neighbouring country Poland serving the Ukrainian refugees, selflessly, ignoring the danger of war when two nations Russia and Ukraine are locked in a severe war, leading to huge loss to men, material and properties.
More than a dozen United Sikhs volunteers from the US, Germany and the UK have set up a relief base camp in Medyka (Poland) close to the Ukrainian border.
At least 1,00,000 refugees have been served by the United Sikhs' humanitarian mission till date and the relief work is continuing.
Its teams have been serving hot meals, sanitation kits, water, clothing, other goods of daily needs and even toys for the newborn.
A team of volunteers drove for 36 hours with a commercial van full of supplies from the UK to reach the base camp last week, delivering power generators, water pumps, blankets, quilts, sleeping bags, sanitary pads, tents, stoves and utensils, etc.
The organisation is also providing heated shelters at the Ukraine border, serving hot meals and rescuing families from Lviv.
United Sikhs is also collaborating with Polish Red Cross Polski Czerwony Krzy to provide medical assistance to the refugees escaping Ukraine.
The announcement came shortly after President Vladimir Putin authorised a "special military operation" in the conflict-hit Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Flights to Kiev, Dnepr, Lvov and Odessa airports "are restricted due to potential hazard for civil aviation
The United Nations refugee agency said on Thursday that the situation was quickly deteriorating after Russia's invasion. It appealed to neighbouring countries to keep their borders open to people seeking a safe haven.
There are an estimated 25,000 Indian students in Ukraine alone who are pursuing medicine, engineering, and science courses. More than 2,500 students from Tamil Nadu are estimated to be studying in Ukraine.
The Foreign Secretary stated that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has spoken to his Polish, Romanian, Hungarian, and Slovakian counterparts for setting up a camp at border areas for evacuation of stranded Indian nationals. He also stated that flight options are available through Dubai and Istanbul and that the Indian Embassy continues to be operational in Ukraine.
The Ministry of External Affairs in touch with all the neighbouring countries surrounding Ukraine to even evacuate Indian citizens. Many citizens who were to fly back to India were left at the airport after closure of Ukrainian airspace following Russia's Vladimir Putin announcement of a military operation in Ukraine.
Amidst the prevailing tension, the Indian students stranded in Ukraine are left with no choice but to queue up outside the Indian Embassy in Kiev seeking the authorities' help as they ran out of food and money. The Russian military actions in Ukraine have triggered panic among all sections, including students from India.
