Anwesh Upadhyaya, an Indian chess player trapped in Ukraine

Former Indian national rapid chess champion Anwesh Upadhyaya is one of several of his compatriots who are confined in their flats, alone and terrified in Ukraine during a Russian invasion and waiting to be evacuated from the nation where he’s lived since 2012.

The 30-year-old was planning to return to India in March after finishing his gastrointestinal apprenticeship at a Kyiv hospital. Because of Russia’s military activity, flights have been canceled, and he is unsure what will happen next.

The level of intensity was shocking to me.”It’s a full-fledged invasion by the military. “

Harsh Vardhan Shringla, India’s Foreign Secretary, addressed a press conference on Thursday that Indian inhabitants of Ukraine that the government would do all necessary to ensure their safe return.

More than 20,000 Indians were in Ukraine, and 4,000 of them returned home to India in the past few days. He stated.

Upadhyaya recalled the country’s turbulence in 2013, recalling student rallies against then-President Viktor Yanukovych’s decision not to sign an accord that would have taken Ukraine closer to the European Union.

But, he argued, that was nothing compared to the recent pandemonium.

While the Maidan Revolution was terrible, it was not as bad as the current situation,” Upadhyaya said referring to the current situation.

He said his family in Bhubaneswar is anxious, so he intended to leave in the first week of March.

The embassy is doing all possible to ensure a safe evacuation, but we must remember that this is also a difficult and unexpected circumstance for them.”

“Citizens are advised not to leave their houses, according to the Indian Embassy. Meanwhile, they offered the location of the bomb shelters if needed and asked that we communicate with them via the Facebook page.

When tensions began to rise, Upadhyaya was able to buy some essentials, and he remarked that this is all he needs for the time being.

“I’m hearing distant. So there you have it. I’m more concerned if the fighting spreads to residential areas.

He recently competed in an over-the-board tournament two months ago in Vinnytsia, Ukraine’s west-central region, where he finished first.

But the doctor, who has an ELO rating of 2352 (chess ranking points), isn’t thinking about the game right now and just wants to get back to India.

“I’m hearing distant explosions,” says the narrator “As he waited in faraway Kyiv, yearning for better days, he remarked.