Dehradun, Feb 28 (PTI) A medical student from Uttarakhand who returned from Ukraine on Monday appealed to the Indian government to help the stranded students inside the strife-torn country where food supplies are fast running out.

The final year medical student, Payal Panwar from Kotdwar, said the stranded students need help of the Indian government and embassy more while they are still inside the war-torn country rather than when they have moved out of it.

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"The problems end when you cross the borders, but while you are inside Ukraine, it is really difficult with food supplies running out and no cash in ATMs. The stranded students need the help of Indian authorities while they are still inside Ukrainian borders," Payal, who studies in Ivano-Frankivsk city in western Ukraine, said.

Recounting her ordeal, she said around 60-70 Indian students had to book a bus and also walk a distance of 8-10 km in freezing cold to reach the Romanian border to get out of Ukraine.

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Many ATMs could not dispense cash and long queues of men and women waiting for their turn for food supplies are seen at several points, she said.

Though happy and relieved to be reunited with her parents, Payal and her parents are worried about her brother who is still stuck in Kharkiv.

Around 22 students from Uttarakhand studying in Ukrainian cities have so far returned home since the crisis broke out there, forcing students and professionals to take shelter inside bunkers.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)