India launches 'Operation Samudra Maitri' to help tsunami-hit Indonesia

NEW DELHI:
India has launched a massive operation to provide assistance to the earthquake and tsunami victims in Indonesia, dispatching two aircraft and three naval ships carrying relief material to the country, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) said on Wednesday.

"Operation Samudra Maitri" for humanitarian assistance was launched after telephonic conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian President Joko Widodo on October 1, and following Indonesia's acceptance of international aid, the MEA said in a statement.

Three Indian Navy ships -- INS Tir, INS Sujatha and INS Shardul -- have also been mobilised to carry out humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR).

These ships are likely to reach the Central Sulawesi province of Indonesia on October 6, the ministry said.

The death toll in Indonesia's twin quake-tsunami disaster, which decimated parts of the central Indonesian island of Sulawesi, has already climbed to nearly 1,400.

The magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck at dusk on Friday and generated a tsunami said to have been as high as 6 metres (nearly 20 feet) in places.