PM Modi to chair another high-level meeting soon on Ukraine situation: Sources

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will shortly chair another high-level meeting on the Ukraine crisis, said government sources on Monday evening. Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister called a high-level meeting over the prevailing situation in Ukraine which was attended by External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia, Foreign Secretary of India Harsh V Shringla, other ministers and a host of senior bureaucrats. 

Government Sources on Monday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be sending four Union Ministers to neighbouring countries of Ukraine to coordinate evacuations of stranded Indians amid ongoing Russian military operations in Ukraine. "Union Ministers Hardeep Singh Puri, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kiren Rijiju and Gen (Retd) VK Singh will travel to neighbouring countries of Ukraine to coordinate the evacuation mission and help students," Government sources said. These Ministers will be going as special envoys of India.

Upon his return from Uttar Pradesh on Sunday evening, the Prime Minister held a two-hour long meeting with Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla, Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba and other senior bureaucrats on Ukraine crisis. In the meeting, PM Modi once again reiterated that ensuring the safety of Indian students and evacuating them is the nation's top priority. 

It was also discussed to further enhance cooperation with neighbouring countries of Ukraine to expedite the evacuation of the stranded Indians. The Prime Minister on February 24 chaired a Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) meeting in New Delhi on the Ukraine crisis. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas of India Hardeep Singh Puri among others were present in the meeting. 

The union government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched operation Ganga to bring back stranded students and Indian citizens from the conflict-torn Ukraine. Special flights are being operated by Air India under "Operation Ganga". Meanwhile, a fifth flight carrying 249 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine landed in New Delhi today morning.