New Delhi: Security personnel dispatch relief material to Typhoon Yagi-hit Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos.
| Photo Credit: PTI

India launched Operation Sadbhav to provide humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) to Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam that have been hit by severe flooding caused by Typhoon Yagi. India has committed $1mn worth of flood relief assistance to Vietnam and $1,00,000 worth of assistance to Laos, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced. Following this, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force (IAF) have swung into action deploying ships and aircraft to ferry the assistance.

“Demonstrating our solidarity with the people affected by Typhoon Yagi, India is dispatching aid to Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos. Ten tonnes of aid, including dry ration, clothing and medicines left for Myanmar onboard INS Satpura on September 15. IAF is carrying 35 tonnes of aid comprising water purification items, water containers, blankets, kitchen utensils, solar lanterns for Vietnam. Ten tonnes of aid comprising genset, water purification items, hygiene supplies, mosquito nets, blankets and sleeping bags sent for Laos,” External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said on social media ‘X’.

The IAF has deployed its C-17 Globemaster aircraft for the HADR operations to airlift aid to Vietnam and Laos. Swift and efficient loading and coordination was carried out by the C-17 team at the Hindan Air Force station, an IAF official said. “The C-17 aircraft, known for their large cargo capacity and long-range capabilities, are typically used to transport relief materials, essential supplies, and personnel to disaster-affected areas.”

Noting that several regions across Myanmar have been severely impacted by Typhoon Yagi, originating from the South China Sea, the Navy commenced preparations to provide HADR assistance. The Eastern Naval Command, in co-cordination with Eastern Fleet and other supporting units — Base Victualling Yard, material organisation and INHS Kalyani — have successfully completed the overnight loading of HADR pallets, including HADR gears, drinking water, victualling rations and medicines etc., onto the Indian naval warship destined from Visakhapatnam for HADR operations in Yangon, the Navy said in a statement.

First responders

India has been among the first responders in providing HADR to the region, the MEA noted, adding, “Operation Sadbhav is part of India’s broader effort to contribute to HADR within the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, in line with its longstanding ‘Act East Policy’.”

Typhoon Yagi, which has been termed the strongest tropical cyclone that has hit Asia in 2024, has displaced millions across South East Asia and caused widespread devastation. Yagi started as a tropical storm in the western Philippine Sea on September 1 and turned into a Category 5 typhoon and made landfall in China’s Hainan province with winds of 223 kmph on September 6.

The MEA stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had conveyed sympathies and solidarity to Prime Minister of Vietnam Pham Minh Chinh immediately after the typhoon struck Vietnam.

An aerial picture shows flood waters surrounding and submerging homes in Ben Voi village on the outskirts of Hanoi on July 28, 2024. Thousands of children in northern Vietnam will struggle to return to school after flash floods and landslides damaged homes, destroyed crops and cut off several communities in the region, a charity warned August 20. File
| Photo Credit: AFP

Thousands of children in northern Vietnam will struggle to return to school after flash floods and landslides damaged homes, destroyed crops and cut off several communities in the region, a charity warned Tuesday (August 20, 2024).

The country’s north suffered through an extremely wet summer, with mountainous areas in the northwest particularly badly hit by heavy downpours and flash floods since early July.

“Nearly 29,000 houses have been damaged and 90,000 hectares of crops destroyed,” Vietnam’s General Statistic Office said late last month.

In Son La province, about 1.3 million people have been affected, according to Save the Children, who said floods had left the countryside strewn with broken bridges and heavily damaged roads.

Eleven people have died in the area, and around 2,670 houses and 29 school buildings were damaged, according to Vietnam’s disaster officials.

Save the Children said 4,500 children would face “safety challenges” as they try to return to school at the beginning of September.

“The recovery will take many months and without immediate intervention, these children could face numerous dangers,” Le Thi Thanh Huong, Country Director of Save the Children Vietnam, said in a statement.

According to the charity, Ha Cong Minh, the principal of a school in Son La province, said “the road to school is very rough with landslides and broken bridges making it hard to travel. Children must cross streams to get to school.”

Floods caused around $85 million in damages in the first seven months of the year, double the figure of last year, according to Vietnam’s General Statistic Office.

“Ninety-one people were killed or reported missing due to adverse weather during that period,” it said.

Between June and November, Vietnam is often struck by downpours, triggering flooding and landslides. Scientists have warned that extreme weather events globally are becoming more intense and frequent due to climate change.