Thiruvananthapuram Feb 24 PTI Concerned about the safety of thousands of Malayalis especially students trapped in Ukraine amidst the Russian military offensive against that country the state of Kerala on Thursday urged the Centre to protect them and make necessary arrangements for their return Separate letters were shot off to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Leader of the Opposition LoP in the State Assembly V D Satheesan seeking safe repatriation of Malayalis trapped in Ukraine The CM in his letter has said that among the Indian students there 2320 were from Kerala and many were staying back as they do not want a break in their studies I am writing this letter to request the kind intervention of your good self with the authorities in that country for ensuring the safety of our students I also request your kind intervention to make necessary arrangements for their return by arranging special flights Vijayan has said The LoP in his letter has said that around 20000 Indians mostly Malayalis are stranded in Ukraine and with acute shortage of flights and rising air fares many of them especially students are unable to afford the air tickets With the war intensifying Ukraine has started shutting down its major airports as there is an imminent threat to the airspace The families of these students back home are extremely worried about the safety of their children Satheesan said He urged the Ministry of External Affairs to take prompt steps to ensure their safe return Meanwhile the Department of Non Resident Keralites Affairs NORKA said that all possible steps were being taken for the safety of Malayalis in Ukraine and that it was in constant touch with the Indian Embassy there and the Ministry of External Affairs NORKA said that it was informed by the Indian Embassy that people have been asked to follow the instructions given by that country during the war and that no one should venture outside and should remain indoors wherever they are Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said alternative arrangements were being made for the safe evacuation of Indians stranded in the Eastern European nation as its airspace was closed Amid concerns expressed by the near and dear ones of the people stranded in Ukraine Muraleedharan said the Central government will ensure the safety of over 18000 Indians including students stranded there and asked them to follow the instructions of the Indian Embassy in Kyiv No need to panicThe Central Government is with youAn alternative plan is being prepared to repatriate Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine We are looking for other ways as the airspace of that country has been closed the Minister told reporters here Amid the rising concerns over the safety of Keralites stranded in Ukraine the states NRK welfare agency NORKA-Roots on Thursday said a total of 468 students from Kerala studying there have contacted from that country and their details have been handed over to the External Affairs Ministry The department of Non-Resident Keralites Affairs NORKA said the Embassy there has assured the safety of those who are trapped in the airport due to the closure of the airport Meanwhile the videos of students from Kerala have been telecast in various television channels in which they could be seen explaining the situation there in Ukraine A student Shan in a video message which was telecast by various media houses said they had to return to their hostels as the airport at Kiev the capital city was closed due to a blast nearby We as a group booked tickets and were on our way to Kiev but had to stop midway and return as the airport was closed The people here are panicked and we could see a lengthy queue before the ATMs and shops Shan said in a video in which he could be seen walking with his luggage back to his hostel Shan also said that there were rumours that all the services were likely to get affected and there was difficulty in making phone calls as the service networks were already affected Malavika Sunil a third year medical student in Ukraine who reached Kochi recently from Ukraine through Sharjah said she somehow managed to catch a flight but many are unable to do so due to exorbitant ticket prices from that country Everything was normal until I flew back But the scene changed today A friend told me today that a blast was heard today morning Our university has cancelled all online and offline classes and instructed the students to keep their certificates safe The institution has also directed the students to keep necessary food supplies ready with them and withdraw necessary cash she told a television channel She said the lowest price available when she flew was at around Rs 55000 and many are unable to afford that NORKA said it got calls from more than 200 students studying in Odessa National Medical University At least 44 students contacted the NORKA from the Kharkiv National Medical university while 18 students called from Bogomolets university NORKA said NORKA has also informed that it has been in constant touch with the Embassy and the Ministry of External Affairs NORKA-Roots CEO C R Kannan said the organisation was in touch with various Keralites organisations in Ukraine PTI HMP RRT SS SS

Thiruvananthapuram Feb 24 PTI Concerned about the safety of thousands of Malayalis especially students trapped in Ukraine amidst the Russian military offensive against that country the state of Kerala on Thursday urged the Centre to protect them and make necessary arrangements for their return Separate letters were shot off to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Leader of the Opposition LoP in the State Assembly V D Satheesan seeking safe repatriation of Malayalis trapped in Ukraine The CM in his letter has said that among the Indian students there 2320 were from Kerala and many were staying back as they do not want a break in their studies I am writing this letter to request the kind intervention of your good self with the authorities in that country for ensuring the safety of our students I also request your kind intervention to make necessary arrangements for their return by arranging special flights Vijayan has said The LoP in his letter has said that around 20000 Indians mostly Malayalis are stranded in Ukraine and with acute shortage of flights and rising air fares many of them especially students are unable to afford the air tickets With the war intensifying Ukraine has started shutting down its major airports as there is an imminent threat to the airspace The families of these students back home are extremely worried about the safety of their children Satheesan has said He has urged the Ministry of External Affairs to take prompt steps to ensure their safe return Meanwhile the Department of Non Resident Keralites Affairs NORKA said that all possible steps were being taken for the safety of Malayalis in Ukraine and that it was in constant touch with the Indian Embassy there and the Ministry of External Affairs NORKA said that it was informed by the Indian Embassy that people have been asked to follow the instructions given by that country during the war and that no one should venture outside and should remain indoors wherever they are On Wednesday Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president and MP K Sudhakaran had also sent a letter to the External Affairs Minister about safety of Indians there and their safe return Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan also a day ago referred to the problems being faced by Indians in Ukraine On Wednesday while speaking to reporters in Kottayam Muraleedharan had said efforts were being made to arrange more flights as per requirement for bringing back Indians from Ukraine in view of the escalating political tensions there He had assured that the central government was responsible for ensuring safety and welfare of nearly 20000 Indians majority of them students in Ukraine He had said that efforts were being made to arrange more flights in view of the situation that many Indians there do not have the requisite means to return and added that no one was being forced to come back PTI HMP SS SS

Thiruvananthapuram Feb 24 PTI Leader of Opposition LoP in the Kerala Assembly V D Satheesan on Thursday shot off a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for safe repatriation of Malayalis trapped in Ukraine in view of the Russian military offensive against that country In the letter the LoP has said that around 20000 Indians mostly Malayalis are stranded in Ukraine and with acute shortage of flights and rising air fares many of them especially the students are unable to afford the air tickets With the war intensifying Ukraine has started shutting down its major airports as there is an imminent threat to the airspace The families of these students back home are extremely worried about the safety of their children Satheesan has said He has urged the MEA to take prompt steps to ensure their safe return A similar letter was sent on Wednesday by Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president and MP K Sudhakaran to the Union Minister Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan also referred to the problems being faced by Indians in Ukraine On Wednesday while speaking to reporters in Kottayam Muraleedharan said efforts were being made to arrange more flights as per requirement for bringing back Indians from Ukraine in view of the escalating political tensions there He had assured that the central government was responsible for ensuring safety and welfare of nearly 20000 Indians majority of them students in Ukraine He had said that efforts were being made to arrange more flights in view of the situation that many Indians there do not have the requisite means to return and added that no one was being forced to come back PTI HMP ROH ROH

The Union Government on Sunday informed that all Malayalis who have registered to return to India have been evacuated from AfghanistanHowever Norka Vice Chairman K Varadarajan said that we cannot say all Malayalis in Afghan have returnedWe will communicate with the MEA and also check if anyone is still stuck in Afghanistan he saidMEA said that they are collecting the data of all Indians in Afghanistan and the ministry is working towards bringing them home safelyOther aircraft have shot off flares on takeoff an effort to confuse possible heat-seeking missiles targeting the planes

Kozhikode Malayalis all over the world celebrate Onam todayIt is the second Onam celebration amid the Covid pandemicEven though the celebrations have been limited this year in the hearts of Malayalis Onam has not lost its gloryMalayalis never fail to enjoy Onam day wherever they areMassive celebrations and competitions are absent this Onam still happiness and prosperity visit in each house on this Onam day

pWe all know that mango often known as the lsquoKing of Fruitsrsquo is one of the most devoured summer fruits Its sweet-tangy flavour makes it hard to resist and with summers already knocking at our doors its time to get your hands on those fresh-sweet juicy mangoes Mangoes are not unknown to Indians but there are still some stories and tricks that you may not know about Check them out herep