Uttarakhand Government has set up coordination centers in Delhi and Mumbai for the people of Uttarakhand returning from Ukraine, informed in-charge Chief Secretary Radha Raturi on Wednesday.
State Disaster Operation Center has also been activated at the state level to bring back the people of Uttarakhand trapped in Ukraine safely and to know about their present location.
In these centres, the information received from all the districts and information departments will be given to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Uttarakhand In-charge Chief Secretary Radha Raturi instructed all the District Magistrates through video conference in the Secretariat to establish constant contact with the families of students and other citizens of Uttarakhand in Ukraine.
“Information about the current location of the citizens and students of Uttarakhand trapped in Ukraine should also be given to the government and the local commissioner’s office in Delhi from time to time so that all information can be exchanged to Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) expeditiously,” she said.
She said that information is also being taken from the Indian Embassy in the countries bordering Ukraine. “So far, information has been received of 282 people from Uttarakhand, who are stranded in Ukraine and its adjoining countries, out of which 33 have returned home safely,” added Raturi.
Raturi further informed that three WhatsApp groups have been formed linking the mobile numbers of students trapped in Ukraine and their families living in Uttarakhand, in which all senior officials are also connected.
“District-level officials are personally in constant contact with the families of students trapped in Ukraine. With the joint efforts of the Government of India and the State Government, efforts are being made to bring everyone back safely,” she said.
The arrangements have been made for lodging and food for all the visitors, arrangements have been made by the state to bring them from Delhi to their destination.
Whatever information is being received about the current location of the citizens of Uttarakhand coming from Ukraine, that information should be exchanged expeditiously so that the information can be sent to the local commissioner’s office and MEA in time, she added.
She directed all the district magistrates that on the basis of the data received, a team should be sent to the citizens of Uttarakhand stranded in Ukraine and its adjoining countries or their families who have not been contacted yet.
Nodal officers have been deployed at the district and tehsil levels to bring back all the citizens of Uttarakhand from Ukraine safely and to establish better coordination. All arrangements are being made by the government, administration and police with mutual coordination. Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman has been sent to New Delhi as nodal officer to establish better coordination on behalf of the Uttarakhand Government.
In the meeting, Additional Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan, ADG Intelligence Sanjay Gunjyal, Secretary SA Murugesan, Vinod Kumar Suman, DIG Intelligence Nivedita Kukreti, Additional Secretary Sonkar, all District Magistrates and ARC Ajay Mishra were present through a virtual medium. (ANI)
