Operation Indravati: How India Is Evacuating Citizens From Crisis-Hit Haiti
India has launched Operation Indravati to evacuate its citizens in the Caribbean nation of Haiti which was overrun by gangs recently.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday that India was "fully committed" to the security and well-being of Indians abroad.
Indians in Haiti to be evacuated to Dominican Republic?
India doesn't have an embassy in Haiti and the situation in the country is being monitored by the Indian mission at Santo Domingo, the capital of neighbouring Dominican Republic.
According to the MEA, there are around 90 Indians in Haiti. Under Operation Indravati the Indian nationals will be first evacuated from Haiti to the Dominican Republic.
Amid violence and looting in the impoverished Caribbean nation, a control room and an emergency helpline number were opened to evacuate distressed Indian nationals from Haiti.
First batch of Indians evacuated?
There are between 75 and 90 Indians in Haiti and about 60 of them have registered with Indian authorities to return to India "if need be", External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said at his weekly media briefing on March 15.
"We are ready to evacuate everybody," he had said.
On Thursday, Minister Jaishankar said that the first batch of 12 Indians were evacuated from Haiti.
"India begins Operation Indravati to evacuate its nationals from Haiti to the Dominican Republic. 12 Indians evacuated today. Fully committed to the security and well-being of our nationals abroad. Thank the Government of the Dominican Republic for their support," Jaishankar said on social media.
What is happening in Haiti
Haiti, the most impoverished nation in the Americas plunged into chaos after armed gangs forced the country's acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry to resign.
While Henry was out of the country, gangs laid siege to the country's main airport to prevent his return.
Armed groups now control 80 per cent of Haiti's capital, according to United Nations estimates, while continuing to fight for the rest.
For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit?Indiatimes News.
