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Cyclone Ditwah: India evacuates 2,000 nationals from Sri Lanka, rescues stranded 150
Almost a million people have been affected and more than 400 have been reported dead or missing in Sri Lanka
India has evacuated more than 2,000 Indian nationals who were stranded in Sri Lanka after the onset of Cyclone Ditwah, even as Indian search and rescue teams and military helicopters rescued more than 150 people from flood-hit regions.
Sri Lanka is facing one of its worst natural disasters in two decades, with almost a million people affected and more than 400 reported dead or missing after Cyclone Ditwah unleashed floods and landslides across the island. India launched Operation Sagar Bandhu on November 28 to provide urgent assistance to Sri Lanka.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) operated special flights to evacuate Indian nationals stranded in Sri Lanka since last week, and IAF aircraft and commercial flights have brought back more than 2,000 citizens, the external affairs ministry said on Monday.
More than 150 people were rescued or assisted in combined operations carried out by Chetak helicopters from the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant and Mi-17 helicopters of the IAF, which are operating in coordination with the Sri Lankan Air Force. These helicopters conducted rescue operations to airlift stranded people, including pregnant women, infants and critically injured.
Among the rescued persons were some 30 foreign nationals from Sri Lanka, India, Australia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Germany, Iran, Poland, Pakistan, Slovenia and South Africa.
Urban rescue teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), with a total of 80 personnel, are continuing search and rescue operations in severely affected and isolated regions of Sri Lanka to assist flood victims, the ministry said. NDRF teams carried out multiple evacuations at Puttalam to rescue stranded children and women. They also carried out rescue operations in Kochikade and Badulla areas.
India has provided 53 tonnes of relief materials to Sri Lanka so far, including 9.5 tonnes of emergency rations from two Indian Navy warships that were in Colombo for an international fleet review, 31.5 tonnes of relief materials airlifted by three IAF aircraft, and another 12 tonnes of relief supplies carried by the Indian Navy warship INS Sukanya on Monday.
The relief materials include tents, tarpaulins, blankets, hygiene kits, ready-to-eat food items, medicines and surgical equipment. India has also despatched two BHISHM medical cubes with a five-member medical team for on-site training of Sri Lankan personnel.
India’s assistance for Sri Lanka, the country’s closest maritime neighbour, is in line with the “Neighbourhood First” policy and Vision Mahasagar. “India continues to be the first responder, standing firmly in solidarity with the government and people of Sri Lanka in this time of need, and remains committed to supporting the ongoing rescue, relief and early recovery efforts,” the external affairs ministry said.
