Smriti Irani
Highlights
- Smriti Irani welcomes Indian students who returned from war-torn Ukraine
- Video of her welcoming them in multiple Indian languages has gone viral
- Under 'Operation Ganga', over 12,000 Indian students have been evacuated out of Ukraine
Union Minister Smriti Irani was among the several ministers who lined up at the Delhi airport as Indian nationals from war-torn Ukraine landed in the country through special flights under Operation Ganga. however, it was Irani and her unique style of welcoming the students that received much applauding. Irani welcomed the students by speaking in regional languages on their return from war-torn Ukraine. "Welcome back home! Your families are waiting with bated breath. You have shown exemplary courage...Let's thank the flight crew as well...," Irani told the students on the flight.
Irani's welcome message is being hailed by netizens who are taking it as an example of 'unity in diversity'. Sample some of these tweets:
As per an estimate, there are a total 18,000 student stranded in war-conflict zones. However, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Singhla on Tuesday said that so far 12,000 Indians have been brought out of Ukraine which is 60 per cent of the total Indians in Ukraine.
For the unversed, Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine's breakaway regions - Donetsk and Luhansk - as independent entities. Several countries, including the UK, the US, Canada, and the European Union, have condemned Russia's military operations in Ukraine and imposed sanctions on Moscow. These countries have also promised military aid to Ukraine to fight Russian forces. The US, Canada and European allies agreed to remove key Russian banks from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT, which means that they won't be able to communicate securely with banks beyond Russia's borders. President Putin has also signed a decree on special economic measures against the US and its allies. Fighting in Ukraine has so far pushed more than 500,000 people across the country's borders, according to the UN refugee agency. Speaking at an emergency session of the UN General Assembly on February 28, Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, had said that Russia has no plans to occupy Ukraine. On February 28, negotiations between delegations of Russia and Ukraine were held in the Gomel Region of Belarus and another round of talks is scheduled for March 2.
--with agency inputs
