Mumbai: Indian students who returned from Ukraine can possibly be absorbed in East European countries neighbouring Ukraine and Russia, where the curriculum is similar, medical education minister Amit Deshmukh said on Wednesday. Deshmukh said the state will speak to the Centre on this option. Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) is willing to extend ‘foster education’ facilities to the students to ensure they do not lose out on academics, he said. The minister met medical education representatives to chalk out a plan for Ukraine-returned students.
The state has established contact with 250 students from Ukraine but around 2,000 of the total 18,000 are estimated to be from Maharashtra. “They do not wish to return to these war-torn countries. Some universities are destroyed, and teaching staff have moved out of the country, and are seeking refuge elsewhere. We can talk to universities in East European countries which follow a similar curriculum. If these students can be accommodated, their careers will be saved,” Deshmukh told TOI.
The state is trying to seek data of students from external affairs ministry. “The idea is to engage with these students and understand their needs. We also need to find out if their universities in Ukraine are providing online education,” he said. He said students who are in first year should be mentally prepared to appear for NEET as it was the only way they can be absorbed in the Indian system. Students who have completed education can be accommodated in our institutions for internships, said the minister. The situation may take time to normalise in Ukraine and the state can have a stop-gap arrangement by providing them foster education here. MUHS vice-chancellor, Lt Gen (retd) Madhuri Kanitkar said the university can provide online-curated lectures for these students and extend library and laboratory facilities based on geographical preferences. “Representatives of deemed universities too have shown interest in extending their facilities to Ukraine returnees,” she said. A study group has been formed under the VC to collate data and provide solutions in a month.
