Operation Brahma: IAF Planes, IN Ships Head For Myanmar

IMAGE: Indian Navy ships INS Karmuk and LCU 52 have sailed for Yangon with 30 tonnes of disaster relief and medical supplies, here and below.

Two more Indian Navy ships INS Karmuk and LCU 52 are en route to Yangon in Myanmar, carrying aid supplies for earthquake-affected regions in that country.

In a post on X, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar said, 'Operation Brahma continues. Indian Navy ships INS Karmuk and LCU 52 are headed for Yangon with 30 tonnes of disaster relief and medical supplies.'

'What we're seeing here in Myanmar is a level of devastation that hasn't been seen over a century in Asia,' the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) noted on X on Sunday.

'This is not just a disaster; it is a complex humanitarian crisis layered over existing vulnerabilities,' Alexander Matheou, regional director for Asia Pacific at the IFRC, stated.

IMAGE: The Indian Air Force continues Operation Brahma, here and below. All photographs: ANI Photo

Under the direction of the ministry of external affairs, the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) efforts are being progressed in conjunction with Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff, the Indian Army, the Indian Air Force and the National Disaster Response Force, the defence ministry stated.

Indian Navy ships INS Satpura and INS Savitri, from the Eastern Naval Command, sailed for Yangon on Saturday, as part of the Indian Navy's immediate HADR response.

As per the defence ministry, approximately 52 tons of relief material have been embarked on board these ships, including HADR pallets consisting of essential clothing, drinking water, food, medicines, and emergency stores.

Meanwhile, rescuers are desperately searching for survivors more than two days after a powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar, toppling buildings as far away as the Thai capital Bangkok and sending tremors through nearby Chinese provinces, CNN reported.

This was the largest earthquake to hit the war-ravaged country in more than a century, authorities say. Experts fear the true death toll could take weeks to emerge, as per CNN.

As of now, at least 1,700 people are dead and around 3,400 injured, according to the country's military government. Nearly 300 others remain missing.

The United States Geological Survey estimated the final death toll could surpass 10,000 people, according to early modeling, as per CNN.

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Mahipal Soni/Rediff.com