India, which was the first to respond to the Nepal crisis, is stepping up its mission today. Eight flights by the transport aircraft are scheduled for the day. They will be carrying equipment, relief material and specialist to Nepal.Also on board with will the Army forward hospitals. At least 12 helicopters will be sent to Nepal on Sunday to help with search and rescue mission.
LATEST UPDATES : {Israel to deploy large IDF delegation to assist Nepal,Home Front Command team to set out to Kathmandu in two planes and include 240 medical and logistics officers as well as field hospital crew.According to initial estimates by the Home Front Command following the devastating earthquake in Nepal, some 240 soldiers and officers will take part in the search and rescue team that will take off from Israel to Kathmandu on Sunday........The delegation will include medical experts and aid workers and will set up a field hospital in the ravaged capital. The primary focus of the team will be to locate and assist the many Israelis stranded by the quake who have yet to make contact with their families. }
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday assured full help to Nepal in wake of the devastating earthquake, and said that all resources are being mobilised to help the Himalayan country. He said IAF has been pressed into service to take NDRF teams, doctors, clothes, medicines, water among others to Nepal, where nearly 1,700 people were killed after a powerful earthquake measuring 7.9 on Richter scale struck earlier in the day.
“As directed by Prime Minister, we have mobilised all resources to support Nepal. We have at present diverted three aircraft and two helicopters to carry NDRF team, doctors, food, water and medicine among others to Nepal,” Mr. Parrikar told PTI.
He added that Army chief Gen. Dalbir Singh is in touch with his Nepalese counterpart to extend any help that the nation might need as part of search and rescue operations. Talking about the situation in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other affected states, Mr. Parrikar said he has directed all Army units and others to carry out rescue operation and extend full cooperation to local authorities.
As the news of the tragic earthquake in Nepal came in, the Defence Ministry had immediately put the Army, BRO and IAF assets on standby.Indian Air Force’s C-130J Super Hercules has already landed at Kathmandu carrying 39 NDRF personnel and 3.5 tonnes of relief material.
Defence sources said two Indian Army field hospitals and two Engineers Task Force teams have been put on emergency standby to leave for Nepal within hours of the news broke in.Another C-17 heavy jet aircraft with 40 rapid action medical team (RAMT) personnel and paramedics was pressed into service within hours.
UNICEF is also providing aid to children who have been harmed by the earthquake. The group said in a statement Saturday that it is conducting a rapid assessment of needs and will work in conjunction with the government to assist survivors.
Sweeny says the American Red Cross is working with the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Nepal Red Cross Society to determine what needs to be done and how they can best direct their efforts. "We are looking at what resources we can provide them in terms of specialists or supplies and financial support," she said.
Nepal needs massive help .The groups face an immense challenge, as nearly the entire country was affected by the 7.8-magnitude quake. Homes and buildings have been reduced to rubble, and communications systems are reportedly down in areas across the nation.
Indians evacuated from earthquake-hit Nepal arrive at New Delhi’s Palam airport in an IAF aircraft early Sunday.
Nearly 550 Indians have been evacuated by the IAF from quake-hit Nepal even as India stepped up its relief and rescue mission with 10 flights and 12 helicopters scheduled to carry specialists and equipment to Kathmandu on Sunday.
Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha said Indian authorities have responded “very proactively, very swiftly and I think every agency, every stakeholder in India who matters in providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations in Nepal in times of their need has been activated and the
response has been exceptional“.
Amid the current humanitarian crisis, one especially vulnerable group is children. Agencies are making plans to ensure that children's needs are specifically addressed. One such relief mission is being undertaken by Save The Children, which already had hundreds of employees in Nepal before the earthquake hit and is now making a concerted effort to give international support to its
local workers.
"We are trying to get our global team into Nepal to assist with the work there," said Save the Children spokesperson Devendra Singh. He noted that while early efforts have been hampered by
logistical problems with getting flights into the country to provide more assistance, the group is working hard to get people in to give relief.
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