Ukraine conflict: Indian student killed in Russian shelling in Kharkiv

KYIV: An Indian student has reportedly been killed in a missile attack in Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv as Russia expands invasion amid global condemnation.

Naveen Shekharappa Gyanagoudar was from Karnataka and came under fire while moving to the railway station from his apartment. He was a student of Kharkiv National Medical University.

"With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning. The Ministry is in touch with his family. We convey our deepest condolences to the family," the Indian Foreign Ministry tweeted.

According to Indian media reports, around 16,000 Indian students are still stranded in Ukraine.

“Many students have shared photos and videos on social media from underground bunkers, metro stations and bomb shelters, where they have been hiding since the Russian attack started last Thursday. Around 8,000 Indian nationals have left by various special flights,” the NDTV said.

Several Indian students remain stuck in eastern parts of Ukraine, which is most affected by the Russian military offensive, and they are finding it difficult to travel by road to reach the western borders.

Students have also been walking to the borders in sub-zero conditions, hoping to cross over and take a flight home.

Central square of Kharkiv shelled

The central square of Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv, was shelled on Tuesday by advancing Russian forces who hit the building of the local administration, regional governor Oleg Sinegubov said.

"This morning the central square of our city and the headquarters of the Kharkiv administration was criminally attacked," Sinegubov said in a video on Telegram.

"Russian occupiers continue to use heavy weaponry against the civilian population," he said, adding that the number of victims was not yet known.

He posted footage of the massive blast and debris inside the building.

Separately, an official in the region of Sumy, which lies north of Kharkiv close to Russia’s border, said early on Monday that some 70 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed in Russian shelling on a military facility in the area.

"Many died. Currently, places are being prepared in the cemetery for about 70 dead Ukrainian soldiers," Dmytro Zhyvytsky, the head of the Sumy region, wrote on Telegram after strikes on the town of Okhtyrka.

He posted images of charred buildings with caved-in walls and rescue workers digging through rubble.

The Ukrainian military, however, has not confirmed the deaths.

Russia has denied targeting civilian areas despite rockets landing in residential neighbourhoods.

Ukraine says more than 350 civilians have been killed since Moscow launched the attack last week.