The Union government told the Supreme Court on Friday that 217 Indian nationals had joined the Russian military during the war in Ukraine, of whom 139 have been released from their contractual agreements, The Hindu reported.Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati told a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant that 49 of the 217 Indians had died in the conflict. Six were confirmed missing, she added.Bhati also said that of the 26 Indians whose families had moved the court seeking their safe return from Russia, 14 were dead, 11 missing and one incarcerated for a criminal offence, the newspaper reported.The mortal remains of eight persons had been returned to their families, the additional solicitor general said.However, the counsel for the families asked how the mortal remains had been identified, saying that they were beyond recognition. In response, Bhati told the court that the Union government was extending support for the collection of DNA samples from family members to help identify them.Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, triggering the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.Amid the war, the external affairs ministry has repeatedly issued advisories warning Indian citizens against joining the Russian military. New Delhi contends that many are duped by unscrupulous agents and are often hired as support staff, such as cooks and helpers, amid Russia’s war on Ukraine.The Union government in April claimed that most of the Indians had joined the Russian military voluntarily.On Friday, the counsel for the 26 families sought compensation and action against agents who had allegedly “trafficked” the Indians to Russia.In their petition, the families had sought a direction to the Union government to take “immediate diplomatic and consular measures through the Embassy of India in the Russian Federation to ascertain the whereabouts, legal status and safety of the Indian nationals named in the petition”, The Hindu reported.The families had also sought directions to identify and prosecute persons involved in illegal overseas recruitment, trafficking, and exploitation of Indian citizens.The Russian defence ministry stopped recruiting Indians in April 2024, according to the country’s embassy in New Delhi. However, contracts for military service have delayed the release of several Indians.In December, Union Minister of State Kirti Vardhan Singh told Parliament that New Delhi and Indian diplomatic missions in Russia had been assisting citizens discharged from the Russian Army for their return to India by facilitating their travel documents and providing them with air tickets.“The Indian mission in Russia has also assisted with the task of evacuation of mortal remains,” Singh had said. “Once the mortal remains are shifted to a safe zone, the identification process involves matching of DNA samples with the next of kin.”The discharge of Indian citizens is discussed bilaterally at several levels, including during interactions between leaders, ministers and officials, he had added.Edited by Sneha.