New Delhi: It may bring some smiles to the faces of students who have returned from Ukraine due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict as the government has decided to ask the Indian Banks' Association to assess the impact of the conflict on outstanding education loans of the returnee students and to initiate stakeholder consultations in this regard.
In response to a question asked by Congress MPs Vijayakumar (alias) Vijay Vasanth and Ravneet Singh Bittu, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has on Monday told Lok Sabha that 1,319 students had availed education loans for study in Ukraine with an outstanding balance of Rs 121.61 crore till December 31, 2021.
The information in this regard has been received from public sector banks and, in respect of 21 private sector banks, from the Indian Banks' Association, the minister said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
Raising the issue of students who have returned from Ukraine, the Congress MPs asked whether the government has any proposal to waive off the loans of the returnee students from war-torn Ukraine or further reduce the rate of interest or extend the tenure for such borrowers.
The Union Finance Minister further, "As per the information provided by External Affairs Ministry, around 22,500 Indian nationals, mostly students, have returned from Ukraine to India safely since February 1, 2022."
"The government provided all possible assistance in terms of shelter, food, and medical attention where required, to displaced Indians who crossed over to the western neighbours of Ukraine, and they were eventually evacuated through flights operated under Operation Ganga," Sitharaman said.
However, the final year MBBS students of Ukrainian universities, who returned to India due to the Russian invasion, have been exempted from the mandatory licensing exam KROK2 as the Ukraine government has announced the cancellation of licensing exam and awarding MBBS degrees to all the final year students once the situation becomes normal.