Jaishankar visits Sri Lanka to follow up on reconstruction efforts after cyclone

The visit underscores India’s Neighbourhood First policy and takes place in context of Op Sagar Bandhu launched to address the devastation caused by the cyclone

Published on: Dec 22, 2025, 22:23:54 IST

By Rezaul H Laskar

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NEW DELHI: External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Monday travelled to Sri Lanka as a special envoy of the Prime Minister for meetings with the leadership in Colombo to follow up on relief and reconstruction efforts in the wake of Cyclone Ditwah.

External affairs minister S Jaishankar being welcomed by Sri Lankan minister Ruwan Ranasinghe and others upon his arrival in Colombo, Sri Lanka (@DrSJaishankar/Via PTI)

India has been among the main providers of humanitarian aid since the cyclone hit Sri Lanka on November 28, causing widespread flooding and deadly landslides. According to the UN, more than 2.2 million people were affected, and an estimated 1.2 million require assistance.

Jaishankar was received by Sri Lanka’s deputy tourism minister, Ruwan Ranasinghe on his arrival in Colombo on Monday evening. “Look forward to my meetings with Sri Lankan leadership tomorrow,” he said on social media.

The external affairs ministry said Jaishankar is visiting Sri Lanka as a special envoy of the Prime Minister. “The visit underscores India’s Neighbourhood First policy and takes place in the context of Operation Sagar Bandhu launched to address the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah,” the ministry said.

India launched Operation Sagar Bandhu on November 28 and delivered hundreds of tonnes of relief supplies and critical early-recovery capabilities across Sri Lanka, including in areas rendered inaccessible by the cyclone.

New Delhi dispatched relief materials by air and sea, rapidly deployed several specialised search-and-rescue units, medical and engineering equipment, and Bailey bridge systems, and set up a field hospital manned by the Indian Army.

Within the first three days of Cyclone Ditwah, 53 tonnes of emergency relief materials were delivered by Indian Navy warships and heavy-lift aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF). On December 2, an IAF C-17 Globemaster airlifted a modular Indian Army field hospital, including ambulances, trauma care units, operating theatres, and 73 personnel, and on December 6, another 997 tonnes of dry rations and other relief materials were transported by warships from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka.

India was the first country to deploy trained disaster responders in Sri Lanka, and more than 450 people were rescued and assisted by these teams. The Indian Army’s field hospital, located in the Badulla district, has treated nearly 3,400 people.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rezaul H Laskar
Rezaul Hasan Laskar is Foreign Editor with the Hindustan Times, which he joined in 2015. He began as a journalist in his hometown of Shillong in northeast India and has worked in newspapers and wire services over the years. He moved to New Delhi in 1997 and initially focused on defence, national security, Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast, while also working of foreign policy and international relations. He has been part of the media delegation accompanying PMs on foreign visits and has reported from destinations ranging from Tibet to Ukraine. Between 2007 and 2013, he was the Press Trust of India correspondent in Pakistan, one of only two Indian journalists allowed to report from the country. He extensively covered Pakistan’s domestic politics and the life of the common people, as well as the fallout of the 2008 Mumbai attacks on India-Pakistan relations and the subsequent trial in Pakistan of the suspects involved in the attack. As part of his reportage in Pakistan, he travelled the breadth of the country, from the Swat Valley to Balochistan. Reza’s first gig in journalism was writing a weekly music column, and music – especially classic rock – remains a keen interest. He is also a movie buff and a keen photographer.Read More

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