"Alabuga Polytechnic" has launched an advertising campaign "Serve your term by working with Geraniums". Students are promised service in UAV troops and a scholarship.

      The "Alabuga Polytechnic" college in Tatarstan has launched an advertising campaign to attract students called "Serve your term while working with 'Geraniums'." This was noted by the publication T-Invariant. "Complete your term in 1 year in the 'Varyag' drone systems brigade and receive a military ID. <...> Collect and launch legendary geraniums from drone ports in the Oryol region," says the special campaign website. The college from the special economic zone "Alabuga" promises young people a scholarship of 305,000 rubles and a diploma through a dual system at "Alabuga Polytechnic." T-Invariant reports that the advertising campaign started on April 15. Posts have been published in a hundred major public groups on the Telegram messenger. It is noted that a separate campaign is being conducted in Telegram channels dedicated to games, for example, in Brawl Stars. The special campaign website also states that "service is conducted in the interests of the special military operation, which the Russian authorities are obliged to call a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but not on the LBS" (line of combat contact). Furthermore, it is noted that this is not a contract service: "The military department of 'Alabuga Polytechnic' is an official conscription service." The website also claims that "service takes place in one of the regions: Oryol region or the command center 'Alabuga Polytechnic'." "According to Russian law, it is not allowed to combine conscription service in the army and full-time study. It is likely that 'Alabuga' is advertising study at the college itself, during which students can undergo training at the local military department. By law, undergoing military training at such a department replaces conscription service, and its graduates are enrolled in the reserve," writes the publication "Important Stories."

      In March, it should be noted, "Alabuga" conducted an advertising campaign in which it was explicitly stated for the first time that underage students were involved in assembling combat drones "Shahed." T-Invariant reported that one of the advertising agencies sent a memo to bloggers reminding them that when talking about "Alabuga," they should avoid words like "slaves," "slavery," "workers," "forced labor," "child labor." It should be recalled that in the summer of 2023, journalists from the publication "Protocol" and the YouTube channel "RZVRT" reported that students of "Alabuga Polytechnic" were being attracted to assemble Iranian drones at a factory in the special economic zone "Alabuga." Many workers were underage, the investigation stated. Even then, journalists wrote that "Alabuga Polytechnic" was attracting female students from Africa, luring them through dating apps Tinder and Badoo. Some of them reported that they were "treated like donkeys" and "kept in slavery."

      The fact that "Alabuga" produces drones is not hidden in Russia. The connection between "Alabuga Polytechnic" and the special economic zone is considered confirmed. In July 2025, a program on the Russian TV channel "Zvezda" (which belongs to the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation) reported that a serial production of "Geranium" drones had been established in the SEZ "Alabuga." The TV channel showed the scale of assembly work involving college students. In the report from "Zvezda," the general director of the SEZ "Alabuga," Timur Shagivaleev, stated that "thousands" of drones are produced at the factory, and students from "Alabuga Polytechnic" are involved in the work. The footage shows young employees, many of whom appear to be teenagers, assembling parts.

      In early 2026, the American "Foundation for Defense of Democracies" (FDD) published a report revealing an aggressive campaign to recruit girls from Latin America to work in the special economic zone "Alabuga." According to analysts' data, after initially focusing on Africa, Russia shifted to countries in South and Central America, turning the "Alabuga Start" program into a global channel for supplying forced labor for the needs of the defense industry. The SEZ "Alabuga" and its college are under Western sanctions. Subscribe to our channel on Telegram.