About 100,000 people have entered Poland from Ukraine over the last several days, a media report said citing the country's Deputy Minister of Interior and Administration Pawel Szefernaker said on Saturday.

"From the beginning of hostilities in Ukraine until today, along the entire border with Ukraine, 100,000 people have crossed the border from Ukraine to Poland," Szefernaker told reporters, as per Sputnik News Agency.

Meanwhile, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi spoke today and talked about the international community's 'joint response to Russian aggression against Ukraine'.

'FM @RauZbigniew and FM of Japan Yoshimasa Hayashi spoke today on call about the international community's joint response to Russian aggression against Ukraine,' Poland Foreign Ministry said in a tweet.  -- ANI

The first evacuation flight carrying 219 Indian nationals from Ukraine landed in Maharashtra's Mumbai on Saturday evening.

The plane had taken off from the Romanian capital Bucharest on Saturday afternoon.

"The first evacuation flight carrying 219 passengers from Ukraine, has landed in Mumbai. The plane had taken off from the Romanian capital Bucharest this afternoon," said the Government of India.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal had earlier said that he is looking forward to receiving the Indian nationals safely evacuated from Ukraine at Mumbai airport.

The government is working in mission mode to ensure the safety of our citizens.

The Union Minister said, 'Looking forward to receiving the Indian nationals safely evacuated from Ukraine at Mumbai airport. The government is working in mission mode to ensure the safety of our citizens.'

Meanwhile, another batch of Indian students entered Hungary from the Ukrainian side at Zahony crossing, travelling onward to Budapest for return to India by Air India flight on Saturday.

Amid the ongoing Ukraine-Russia crisis, the Indian Embassy in Kiev has advised Indian citizens against moving to any of the border checkpoints without prior coordination with government officials at border posts.  -- ANI

The first batch of Indian students entered Hungary from Ukraine through the Zahony crossing point on Saturday.

The students are being taken to Budapest for return to India by an Air India flight, the Indian embassy in Hungary said.

'First batch of Indian students enter Hungary from Ukrainian side at Zahony crossing, travelling onward to Budapest for return to India by AI flight today,' it tweeted.

India on Friday managed to set up camp offices in Lviv and Chernivtsi towns in western Ukraine to facilitate the transit of Indians to Hungary, Romania and Poland.

India also positioned teams of officials at Zahony border post in Hungary, Krakowiec as well as Shehyni-Medyka land border points in Poland, Vysne Nemecke in the Slovak Republic and Suceava transit point in Romania to coordinate the exit of Indian nationals from Ukraine.

India is trying to evacuate its nationals through Ukraine's land borders with Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Ukrainian government closed the country's airspace following the Russian military offensive.   -- PTI

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has spoken with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

'Informed of the course of Ukraine repulsing Russian aggression. Urged India to give us political support in UNSC. Stop the aggressor together,' Zelensky tweeted.

The Prime Minister's Office said in a statement that 'President Zelenskyy briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi in detail about the ongoing conflict situation in Ukraine'.

'The PM expressed his deep anguish about the loss of life and property due to the ongoing conflict. He reiterated his call for an immediate cessation of violence and a return to dialogue, and expressed India's willingness to contribute in any way towards peace efforts,' it said.

'The PM also conveyed India's deep concern for the safety and security of Indian citizens, including students, present in Ukraine.

'He sought facilitation by Ukrainian authorities to expeditiously and safely evacuate Indian citizens,' the PMO said.

Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Saturday said that France has agreed to supply military equipment to Keiv as well as ban Russia from SWIFT international banking system.

Kuleba held a telephonic conversation with French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian and urged the EU to immediately introduce the third package of sanctions on Russia.

Taking to Twitter Kuleba said, 'Call with my French counterpart @JY_LeDrian. France supports banning Russia from SWIFT. I urged to immediately introduce the third package of EU sanctions to stop Russian invasion. France is also ready to supply weapons and military equipment to help Ukraine defend itself.'

Amid the growing tensions between Moscow and Kiev, Kuleba, on Friday, also spoke with his German, Belgian and Italian counterparts.

Earlier, Kuleba spoke with the Foreign Minister of Bahrain Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani to brief him about the latest developments of the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Notably, in the early hours on Thursday, Russia launched a special operation after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk requested assistance to defend themselves from ongoing attacks by the Ukrainian troops.

The Western countries have strongly condemned the Russian military operation and boosted the sanctions pressure on Moscow.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday discussed the sanctions, defence assistance and an 'anti-war coalition' with US President Joe Biden.

'Strengthening sanctions, concrete defence assistance and an anti-war coalition have just been discussed with @POTUS. Grateful for the strong support to Ukraine,' Zelenskyy tweeted.

Furthermore, Biden on Friday said that the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) will maintain its 'open door' to those European states who share its values and who one day may seek to join our Alliance.  -- ANI

The Union Cabinet was learnt to have been briefed on Saturday about the situation in Ukraine and efforts being taken to evacuate Indian nationals from the war-hit country.

The Cabinet Committee on Security is also learnt to have met on Saturday amid the crisis in Ukraine after it was attacked by Russia.

Government sources said members of the Union Cabinet were briefed on the evolving situation in Ukraine and round-the-clock efforts being made by the government to bring back Indians from that country.

The government is bringing back Indians from Ukraine by operating special flights from its neighbouring countries, including Romania and Hungary.

Indians are being ferried to border areas of Ukraine before being flown to India from the bordering country concerned since the Ukrainian airspace is closed for civilian flights.

An Air India flight carrying Indians from Ukraine is enroute from Romania to Mumbai.

Many more evacuation flights are expected to be operated in the coming days.   -- PTI

Union ministers Piyush Goyal and V Muraleedharan will receive at airports the Indians returning from war-torn Ukraine in government-chartered flights, official sources said on Saturday.

Goyal will receive the evacuees at the Mumbai airport, coming in an Air India flight from Romanian capital Bucharest, later in the evening, while Muraleedharan will receive the batch at the New Delhi airport, they said.

Around 16,000 Indians, mainly students, were stranded in Ukraine, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla had said on February 24.

The Indian embassy in Ukraine on Friday said it is working to establish evacuation routes from Romania and Hungary.

Air India's first evacuation flight departed from Romanian capital Bucharest on Saturday afternoon for Mumbai with 219 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine due to the ongoing Russian military offensive, officials said.

The airline's second evacuation flight departed from Delhi at 11.40 am and is expected to land in Bucharest at around 6.30 pm (Indian Standard Time), they noted.

Indian nationals who reached the Ukraine-Romania border by road have been taken to Bucharest by Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flights, they said.

The first evacuation flight AI1944 departed from Bucharest at 1.55 pm (Indian Standard Time) and is expected to land at the Mumbai airport at around 9 pm, they said.

The second evacuation flight AI1942 is expected to return to the Delhi airport on early Sunday morning with another 250 Indian nationals, they mentioned.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Twitter that AI1944 with '219 Indian nationals has taken off from Romania'.

'Regarding evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine, we are making progress. Our teams are working on the ground round the clock. I am personally monitoring,' he added.

Air India will operate more flights on Saturday to Bucharest and Hungarian capital Budapest to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian airspace has been closed for civil aircraft operations since February 24 morning and therefore, the evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest.   -- PTI

The Bombay High Court on Saturday extended till March 3 the `medical bail' granted to poet and activist Varavara Rao, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case.

Rao, 82, was first granted bail on health grounds by the high court in February 2021 for a period of six months.

He was also asked not to leave Mumbai.

He then filed an application seeking extension of the bail and subsequently filed another plea seeking permanent bail on the ground of ill-health.

The court has, since September 2021, extended the time given to him to surrender several times.

On Saturday, Rao's lawyers mentioned his fresh plea seeking extension of bail before a division bench of Justices S B Shukre and A M Borkar.

Rao said in his application that as per medical reports he has asymptomatic Parkinson's disease, neurological ailments and suffers from severe abdomen pain indicating umbilical hernia.

He also sought modification of the bail condition that he must not leave Mumbai, requesting that he be allowed to return to Telangana, his native state.

The court said it would hear the application on March 1, and extended the time for surrender till March 3.

Earlier this week, a bench headed by Justice S S Shinde recused (withdrawn) itself from matters pertaining to the Bhima Koregaon-Elgar Parishad case.

Chief Justice Dipankar Datta then assigned the cases to the bench headed by Justice Shukre.

The case relates to the alleged inflammatory speeches delivered at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial.

The Pune police, which probed the case initially, claimed the conclave was backed by Maoists.

The NIA later took over the probe. Apart from Rao, several other activists have been arrested in the case under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.   -- PTI

Ukraine Health Minister Viktor Liashko said that a total of 198 Ukrainians have been killed, including three children till now since the Russia-Ukraine crisis escalated on Thursday.

Liashko, in a Facebook post, shared the number of casualties in the Russian military operation in Ukraine so far.

Along with this, in the post, he also said that 1,115 Ukrainians have been wounded in three days of fighting.

He said that from the total number of wounded, 33 were children, reported Times of Israel.

In the early hours on Thursday, Russia launched a special operation after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk requested assistance to defend themselves from ongoing attacks by the Ukrainian troops.

The Western countries have strongly condemned the Russian military operation and boosted the sanctions pressure on Moscow.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday discussed the sanctions, defence assistance and an anti-war coalition with US President Joe Biden.

'Strengthening sanctions, concrete defence assistance and an anti-war coalition have just been discussed with @POTUS. Grateful for the strong support to Ukraine,' Zelenskyy tweeted.

Furthermore, Biden on Friday said that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will maintain its 'open door' to those European states who share its values and who one day may seek to join our Alliance.   -- ANI

IMAGE: Ukrainian servicemen inspect a damaged vehicle, at the site of fighting with Russian troops, in Kyiv, on February 26, 2022. Photograph: Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters

The first flight to Mumbai with 219 Indians has taken off from Romania, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday, referring to India's evacuation of its nationals from Ukraine.

He also said India is making progress in the evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine.

'Regarding evacuation of Indian nationals from Ukraine, we are making progress. Our teams are working on the ground round the clock. I am personally monitoring,' he said on Twitter.

'The first flight to Mumbai with 219 Indian nationals has taken off from Romania,' he added.

The Indians had exited Ukraine and reached Romania through land border crossings between the two countries.   -- PTI

A day after the Central Bureau of Investigation arrested Anand Subramanian, former group operating officer of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), it is now understood to have confirmed that he was, indeed, masquerading as the mysterious Himalayan yogi who was directing decisions of Chitra Ramkrishna, the powerful former managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO).

He did this through and email ID called rigyajursama@outlook.com and a forensic audit by Ernst & Young (E&Y) had told the market regulator with a high degree of probability that the email ID rigyajursama@outlook.com was indeed, operated by Subramanian.

Read the full report HERE 

Click HERE to watch the video.

The Russian armed forces struck Ukrainian military facilities with sea- and land-based cruise missiles at night, Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov said on Saturday.

"During the night, the Russian armed forces struck facilities of the Ukrainian military infrastructure with long-range precision weapons using air- and sea-based cruise missiles," Konashenkov told reporters.

According to the spokesman, in total, the Russian armed forces destroyed 821 objects of the Ukrainian military infrastructure.

"Among them are 14 military airfields, 19 command posts and communication centres, 24 S-300 and Osa anti-aircraft missile systems, 48 radar stations. 7 combat aircraft, 7 helicopters, 9 unmanned aerial vehicles were shot down. 87 tanks and other combat armoured vehicles, 28 multiple rocket launchers, 118 units of special military vehicles were destroyed," Konashenkov said.

He added that the Russian navy destroyed 8 Ukrainian military boats.

Konashenkov also stressed that only military facilities are subject to attack, no damage is caused to residential and social infrastructure.   -- ANI

Street fighting broke out in Kyiv as Russian troops stormed towards Ukraine's capital on Saturday.

Officials have urged residents to take shelter.

Ukraine's president refused an American offer to evacuate, insisting that he would stay.

"The fight is here," he said.

Ukrainian officials reported some success in fending off assaults, but fighting persisted near the capital.

Skirmishes reported on the edge of Kyiv suggested that small Russian units were probing Ukrainian defences to clear a path for the main forces.   -- Agencies

"Units of the Russian Armed Forces have established full control over the city of Melitopol," Konashenkov told reporters.

He also stressed that Russian soldiers are taking all measures to ensure the safety of civilians and exclude provocations by Ukrainian special services and nationalists.

On Thursday, Russia launched a special operation to 'demilitarise and de-Nazify Ukraine', responding to calls from the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics for 'help in countering the aggression of the Ukrainian troops'.

The Russian Defence Ministry said the special operation is targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure only and the civilian population is not in danger.

Moscow says it has no plans to occupy Ukraine.   -- ANI/Sputnik

IMAGE: Service members of the Ukrainian armed forces stand next to a tripod-mounted missile system outside Kharkiv, Ukraine February 24, 2022. Photograph: Maksim Levin/Reuters

Facebook has banned Russian state media from running ads and monetising the platform over the Russian military operation in Ukraine, said Nathaniel Gleicher, the head of the social network's security policy, on Saturday.

'We are now prohibiting Russian state media from running ads or monetising on our platform anywhere in the world. We also continue to apply labels to additional Russian state media. These changes have already begun rolling out and will continue into the weekend,' Gleicher said in a tweet.

The security policy said that the company is closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine and will keep sharing steps they are taking to protect people on their platform.

Earlier, Facebook had established a Special Operations Center in response to the unfolding military conflict in Ukraine.

'It is staffed by experts (including native speakers) so we can closely monitor the situation and act as fast as possible.'

The company had said that it launched a new feature in Ukraine that allows people to lock their profiles to provide an extra layer of privacy and security to help people protect themselves online.    -- ANI

An Air India plane from Mumbai landed in the Romanian capital Bucharest on Saturday morning to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine due to the Russian military offensive.

The aircraft, AI1943, took off from the Mumbai airport around 3.40 am (Indian Standard Time) and landed at the Bucharest airport around 10.45 am (Indian Standard Time), senior government officials said.

Indian nationals, who reached the Ukraine-Romania border by road, have been taken to Bucharest by the Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flight, they noted.

AI1943, which is being operated on Boeing 787 aircraft, can carry 256 passengers at a time, they said.

Air India will operate more flights on Saturday to Bucharest and Hungarian capital Budapest to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian airspace has been closed for civil aircraft operations since the morning of February 24 and therefore, the evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest.

Around 20,000 Indians, mainly students, are currently stranded in Ukraine, the officials said.

Before the closure of the Ukrainian airspace, Air India had operated a flight to Ukraine's capital Kyiv on February 22 that brought 240 people back to India.

It had planned to operate two more flights on February 24 and February 26 but it could not do so as the Russian offensive began on February 24 and the Ukrainian airspace was consequently shut down.

Air India said on Twitter on Friday night that it will be operating flights on B787 aircraft from Delhi and Mumbai to Bucharest and Budapest on Saturday as special government charter flights to fly back stranded Indian citizens.

The Indian embassy in Ukraine on Friday said it is working to establish evacuation routes from Romania and Hungary.

'At present, teams are getting in place at the following check points: Chop-Zahony Hungarian border near Uzhhorod, Porubne-Siret Romanian border near Chernivtsi,' it said.

Indian nationals, especially students, living closest to these border checkpoints are advised to depart in an organised manner in coordination with teams from the Ministry of External Affairs to actualise this option, the embassy said.

Once the above-mentioned routes are operational, the Indian nationals travelling on their own would be advised to proceed to the border checkpoints, it noted.

The embassy advised Indian travellers to carry their passports, cash (preferably in US dollars), other essential items and COVID-19 vaccination certificates to the border checkpoints.

'Print out Indian flag and paste prominently on vehicles and buses while travelling,' it said.

The distance between Kyiv and the Romanian border checkpoint is approximately 600 kilometres and it takes anywhere between eight-and-a-half hours to 11 hours to cover it by road.

Bucharest is located approximately 500 kilometres from the Romanian border checkpoint and it takes anywhere between seven to nine hours by road.

The distance between Kyiv and the Hungarian border checkpoint is around 820 kilometres and it takes 12-13 hours to cover it by road.   -- PTI

This comes after Russia on Friday vetoed a draft UN resolution on Ukraine. 

The joint statement, which was read aloud by the US ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said this resolution was "vital and straightforward." 

"Fundamentally, it was about whether the countries on the Security Council -- charged with maintaining international peace and security -- believe in upholding the UN Charter," the statement said. 

Holding Russian President Vladimir Putin responsible, the signatories said that Russia's action amounts to "violation of the UN Charter." -- ANI

"In light of the recent events, Indian Air Force has decided not to deploy its aircraft for multi-nation air exercise Cobra Warrior 2022 in the UK," said the IAF in a tweet. 

Five light combat aircraft Tejas fighter jets of the Indian Air Force were to be deployed for exercise Cobra Warrior 2022 in the UK. 

The death toll climbed to 5,13,481 with 255 daily fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. 

With this, the country recorded its daily COVID-19 cases under one lakh for the 20th consecutive day. 

The active cases comprise 0.28 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has further improved to 98.52 per cent, the health ministry said. 

A reduction of 12,354 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. 

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.01 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate was 1.36 per cent, according to the health ministry. 

The number of recoveries surged to 4,22,70,482, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.20 per cent. 

The cumulative doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive exceeded 177.13 crore. -- PTI

"We've communicated to Pakistan our position regarding Russia's further renewed invasion of Ukraine, and we have briefed them on our efforts to pursue diplomacy in our war," said US state department spokesperson, Ted Price. 

Imran Khan's meeting with Putin came hours after several Western nations hit Russia with new sanctions, which Khan himself is seen joyfully describing as 'exciting times' in a video shared on Twitter of Khan's landing in Moscow. 

It gives the Western Powers for whom Pakistan is a 'non-NATO ally,' reasons to be annoyed, The Times of Israel reported. 

On top of this, Khan's added 'disqualification' in eyes of the US is that his country is being increasingly seen as a Chinese ally. 

China is the US's larger adversary that is tacitly supporting Moscow, the report said, adding further that, Khan may soon realize that he is being the "wrong man in the wrong place, at the wrong time." 

The 'ill-timed' visit has been heavily criticized in Pakistan, with media and analysts questioning the utility of a visit at such a time when tensions are at an all-time high between Russia and the West. -- ANI

The Indian mission in Kyiv said that the Indian citizens should not move to any border posts of Ukraine without prior information with the government officials at the border posts. 

"All Indian citizens are advised not to move to any of the border posts without prior coordination with government of India officials at border posts,' said the embassy of India in Kyiv, Ukraine in an advisory to the Indian nationals. -- ANI    

In a tweet, Modi hailed him as a great freedom fighter who, he said, was an epitome of sacrifice and resolve. 

His life dedicated to serving the motherland will always be a source of inspiration for the countrymen, the prime minister said. 

A foremost proponent of the Hindutva ideology, Savarkar died in 1966. -- PTI

The flight, AI1943, took off from the Mumbai airport around 3.40 am and is expected to land at the Bucharest airport around 10 am (Indian Standard Time), senior government officials said. 

Indian nationals who have reached the Ukraine-Romania border by road are being taken to Bucharest by Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flight, they noted. 

Air India will operate more flights on Saturday to Bucharest and Hungarian capital Budapest to evacuate Indians stranded in Ukraine. 

The Ukrainian airspace has been closed for civil aircraft operations since the morning of February 24 and therefore, the evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest. -- PTI

An FIR registered under the Explosives Act in the case and markings are being checked to ascertain their origin, said superintendent of police Jashandeep Singh Randhawa. -- ANI

In the early hours on Thursday, Russia launched a special operation after the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk requested assistance to defend themselves from ongoing attacks by the Ukrainian troops. 

The Western countries have strongly condemned the Russian military operation and boosted the sanctions pressure on Moscow. -- ANI

"These actions impose unprecedented diplomatic and economic costs on Russia and further isolate it from the global financial system and the international community," the US department of the treasury said in a statement. 

According to the statement, Putin and Lavrov are directly responsible for Russia's unprovoked and unlawful further invasion of Ukraine, a democratic sovereign state. 

Earlier in the press briefing, White House spokesperson Jen Psaki stated that the US will join the EU in sanctioning Putin and Lavrov. 

"In addition, today the US department of state designated two additional government of Russia officials and members of Russia's security council directly responsible for the further invasion of Ukraine: 

Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Sergei Shoigu, and chief of the general staff of the Russian armed forces, first deputy minister of defense, and general of the army Valery Gerasimov," read the statement. 

Treasury has previously designated eleven members of the Russian security council and will continue to impose costs on the ruling elite as Russia prosecutes this brutal war of choice, the statement said. -- ANI

Biswal's daughter Sunita said the former chief minister breathed his last at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar. 

He was suffering from pneumonia and is survived by five daughters- Sabita, Sanjukya, Manjiulata, Sunita and Anita. 

Mourning his death, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on twitter "anguished by the passing away of former Odisha CM Shri Hemendra BIswal ji. He was active in public life and worked extensively among people. In this sad hour my thoughts are with his family and supporters." 

Biswal also represented Sundergarh constituency in the Lok Sabha, and was a six-time MLA from Jharsuguda district, besides being the state's chief minister twice. 

He was elected chief minister for the first time for the period December 7,1989 to March 5, 1990 and again from December 6,1999 to March 5, 2000. 

He was the first tribal chief minister of Odisha. 

He was elected to the Assembly for the first time in 1974 and continued till 1977. 

Later he become an MLA in 1980 and held the post till 2004 from Laikera Assembly segment. Biswal started his career from panchayat politics after a brief stint as a school teacher in Jharsugudda district. -- PTI

Indian nationals who have reached the Ukraine-Romania border and Ukraine-Hungary border by road will be taken to Bucharest and Budapest, respectively, by Indian government officials so that they can be evacuated in the Air India flights, they added. 

The Ukrainian airspace was closed for civil aircraft by the country's authorities Thursday morning and therefore, the evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest. 

Air India said on Twitter on Friday night that it will be operating B787 aircraft from Delhi and Mumbai to Bucharest and Budapest on February 26 (Saturday) as special government charter flights to fly back stranded Indian citizens. 

Earlier in the day, officials had said that Air India would operate two flights on Friday, but it was not immediately clear why they did not take off. 

The Indian embassy in Ukraine on Friday said it is working to establish evacuation routes from Romania and Hungary. 

"At present, teams are getting in place at the following check points: Chop-Zahony Hungarian border near Uzhhorod, Porubne-Siret Romanian border near Chernivtsi," it said. -- PTI