Back from Ukraine: Dream chasers from Gadchiroli down but not out

Nagpur: All the four medical students from Maoist-affected Gadchiroli are back from Ukraine to the safety of their homes, but their indomitable spirit doesn’t want to surrender. They want to fly back to make their (and their parents’) dreams come true at the earliest, despite the uncertainty hanging like swords over their heads and the struggle they underwent to return safely.
Tanushri Kar, a first year student at Uzhhorod National University who reached her home in Mulchera, interior Gadchiroli, on Sunday, said her father had sold their ancestral property to send her to Ukraine with much hope and anticipation, which she wants to fulfil.“If the war or political tensions continue, I will try for country or state transfer to accommodate myself for completing the course, but will not think of surrendering,” said Tanushri, who is the younger of two siblings.
The Kar family of Mulchera is among those who had migrated from Bangladesh post the Bangladesh Liberation War to get settled in Gadchiroli with the government’s help, leaving their native land.
Tanushri’s father Ramakrishna, who owns a grocery shop, sounded heartbroken. He said he doesn’t wish to send his daughter amid such turmoil but is compelled to. “My dream is to see my daughter as a doctor; I had sold our ancestral property to make it happen,” he said.
Smruti Sontakke, a first year student at Vinnytsia National Pirogov Medical University in Ukraine, sounded apprehensive about the possible attitude of the Ukrainian populace after they (the students) returned to their soil. “India’s neutral role may leave some Ukrainians disappointed. They would have expected some of us to stay back and help them. This may change their attitude towards Indians,” said Smruti, whose father is a professor at a college in Ashti.
Smruti too said her family had to overcome economic hurdles to send her to Ukraine, for seeing the dream of her becoming a doctor turn into reality. “Now, there is no point in thinking about giving up. Much money and time has been already invested,” said the MBBS aspirant.
She added that her faculty members in Ukraine had been supportive and used to treat them as their own children. “Tensions have existed between Russia and Ukraine for over a decade, but no one expected a war to take place,” said Smruti.
Third year MBBS student Divyani Bambolkar, who is the daughter of a government school teacher, narrated how she had to walk for 12km along with thousands of students to make it to the Romania border. Now back home, she welcomed India’s move of extending medical relief to Ukraine. “I am hoping to return so as to pursue my dream career,” Divyani said.
Rani Armadalawar, a fifth year MBBS student at Uzhhorod National University, returned home limping with a swollen leg on Sunday. She said it was unfortunate that such an incident at the fag end of her course had put a brake on her ambition. “With Covid around, studies were already affected but now, the war has dissipated crucial time needed by every senior student to focus and study harder,” Rani said.