When D. Ajith Raj spoke to his elder brother Anand in Odappaviduthi village, Karambakkudi Block in Pudukottai district on Saturday morning, he was making his way down to the underground bunker along with his mates on the campus of the National Pirogov Memorial Medical University in the west central Ukrainian city of Vinnytsia.
“My brother said he hadn’t eaten well for the past two days because food and water was in short supply. Ajith sounded worried and I could hear sirens blaring in the background,” Mr. Anand told The Hindu.
The family presented a petition to the Pudukottai District Collector, requesting the safe evacuation of Mr. Ajith, a first year medical student, on Saturday.
The youngest of six children, Mr. Ajith’s kin are primarily from a farming background. “It had been Ajith’s dream, right from his childhood, to become a doctor. He did well in school too. We decided to send him to Ukraine through an education consultant in Coimbatore,” said Mr. Anand.
“There was no problem when his medical course started a few months ago. Though we asked him to return home as soon as we heard of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in the news, he said he could not travel because the college had made class attendance compulsory for promotion to the next year. They shifted to online classes only two days ago,” he added.
The family is eager to see their son back in Odappaviduthi soon. “As per official advice, we have contacted the toll-free helpline and registered Ajith’s passport and other relevant details. We hope he will be back safe and sound,” said Mr. Anand.
