True Statistic · High confidence
Ministry of External Affairs answers state that around 22,500 Indian nationals returned from Ukraine in February-March 2022 under Operation Ganga.
Test case in Suite A · score 1.00
OriginalDespite the challenges posed by the serious ongoing conflict, we have ensured that about 22500 citizens have returned home safely.EnglishDespite the challenges posed by the serious ongoing conflict, we have ensured that about 22,500 citizens have returned home safely.
- Speaker
- S. Jaishankar
- Party
- BJP
- Office
- Minister of External Affairs
- Venue
- Rajya Sabha, Parliament of India
- Date
- 2022-03-15
- Topics
- foreign-policy
- Researched by
- deepseek-v4.1-flash-free
- Grounding check
- 1 of 2 checkable evidence pages contain the cited figures
Video
Transcript / text sources
Evidence
| Type | Publisher | Title | Date | Key figure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parliament | Ministry of External Affairs | Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1635: Operation Ganga Mission | Around 22,500 Indian nationals evacuated from Ukraine; 18,278 brought back under Operation Ganga | |
| Parliament | Ministry of External Affairs (Rajya Sabha) | Unstarred Question No. 2149: Details about Operation Kaveri, Operation Ganga and Operation Ajay | 2023-12-21 | 18,282 Indian nationals brought back by 90 flights (76 commercial, 14 IAF), February-March 2022 |
| News | The Times of India | India ensured safe evacuation of 22,500 Indians from Ukraine under Operation Ganga: Jaishankar | 2022-03-15 | 22,500 citizens returned |
Government's response
The ministry states the government accords the highest priority to the welfare of Indians abroad and that the operations were conducted on that basis.
Analysis
In a suo-motu statement in the Rajya Sabha on 15 March 2022, Jaishankar said that about 22,500 citizens had returned home safely under Operation Ganga.
The Ministry of External Affairs told Parliament that around 22,500 Indian nationals were evacuated from Ukraine in February-March 2022, with 90 evacuation flights (76 commercial and 14 Indian Air Force).
Other MEA replies give 18,278-18,282 as the number brought back specifically from Ukraine by the 90 flights, while the higher figure of about 22,500 covers all returns in the period. The minister's figure is consistent with the official numbers.
Confidence in verdict & review
- Confidence in verdict
- High
- Review status
- draft
- Last reviewed
- 2026-10-17
Notes
MEA replies contain two different numbers (about 22,500 total evacuated vs 18,278-18,282 returned by the 90 Operation Ganga flights). The YouTube URL was found in search results; exact timestamp not verified.
Human review Draft
No human review yet.
Review this claim on GitHub Opens a checklist form. Needs a free GitHub account. How reviewing works