E-Paper
BIMSTEC nations stood by each other in trying times: Rajnath Singh
Singh said it will remain India’s endeavour to facilitate, support and assist in all possible ways and develop measures that aid in regional cooperation
PUNE Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said the BIMSTEC countries have stood by each other under trying circumstances, like cyclones, Tsunamis, earthquakes and floods.
He was addressing a military gathering at the PANEX-21, a trans-national, multi-agency exercise organised at the College of Military Engineering in Pune, where he witnessed a live demonstration related to a natural disaster scenario in the time of Covid-19 pandemic and the response of humanitarian aid and disaster management.
The multinational exercise aims to foster jointness and develop capabilities in disaster management aspects for the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) nations.
The BIMSTEC regional organisation comprises Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand, besides India.
“During such adverse conditions that the depth of understanding and friendship can be gauged. And I have no hesitation in acknowledging that our countries have stood by each other under such trying circumstances,” the Defence Minister said.
Singh said it will remain India’s endeavour to facilitate, support and assist in all possible ways and develop measures that aid in regional cooperation, which benefit all the member states, in the Bay of Bengal region,” the defence minister said.
He further said that during recent decades , the country has witnessed a series of calamities like cyclones, Tsunamis, earthquakes and floods, that caused large scale deaths and destruction but the jointsmanship brought greater cooperation amongst the BIMSTEC nations.
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PANEX-21 at Pune
PANEX-21, a multi-national - multi-agency exercise is being organised at Pune from December 20-22 with a focused aim to foster common and develop capabilities in disaster management aspects for the BIMSTEC nations. The exercise, is being attended by delegates and subject matter experts from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
