Here’s how India has historically rescued its nationals from war zones

Over the past few days, thousands of Indians in war-ravaged Ukraine have actually lived the life that we have seen played out in popular war movies. Scared, hungry and holed up in bomb shelters for days, many have walked miles to the borders to be finally evacuated, some even with their pets, on flights sent by the Indian government as part of Operation Ganga.

India so far has flown home close to 16,000 of its nationals from the conflict zone in 76 evacuation flights. A few hundred, especially students remain stranded as India awaits Russia and Ukraine to reach a ceasefire to facilitate the safe evacuation of civilians through corridors.

The current evacuation, however, isn’t the first of its kind for an Indian government. The country has several brave evacuations to its credit where pilots have landed their planes in war zones and sailors cast anchor in ‘troubled waters’ to bring back stranded Indians home.

Here a look at a popular few:

Vande Bharat Mission

The Vande Bharat Mission was initiated by the Narendra Modi government on May 7, 2020, immediately after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic to repatriate Indians stuck in foreign countries.

One of the biggest evacuation missions done by any country during peacetime, the operation saw 1.8 million Indians getting back home in over 15 phases. The number of evacuees surpassed that done during the famous Kuwait airlift in 1990.

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While the first three phases of the evacuation were conducted strictly by Air India, private players were roped in by the fourth phase. The government is currently conducting the 16^th phase of the repatriation flights.

Unlike other evacuation missions, the fares here are paid by the passengers while the government facilitates the flights.

Operation Safe Homecoming

The Indian government launched an air-sea operation on February 26, 2011 to rescue around 15,400 Indian nationals during the Libyan Civil War.

When the clashes between the forces of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and rebels who were opposing his government intensified, evacuation became difficult via the Tripoli airport.

The Indian evacuation was conducted jointly by Air India and the Indian Navy.

India sent three naval ships including two destroyers – INS Mysore and INS Aditya – and its largest amphibious vessel, INS Jalashwa from the Mumbai port to Libya on February 26. While the charter ships of these vessels evacuated Indians from Tripoli and Benghazi, nine Air India flights brought back Indians from Tripoli, Sirte and Sebha in Libya, Alexandria in Egypt and Malta.

Operation Maitri

The rescue and relief operation was conducted by the Indian government in collaboration with the Indian Armed Forces following the devastating earthquake in Nepal in April 2015.

Around 5,000 Indians were evacuated from Nepal via Air Force and civilian flights.

The earthquake measuring 7.8 magnitude on the Richter scale killed close to 9,000 people. It also led to an avalanche on Mount Everest, in which 17 people perished; and another in Langtang valley where 250 people were reported either missing or dead. A mountaineering team of the Indian Army also recovered 19 bodies, possibly of mountaineers from the Everest base camp while rescuing 61 climbers from Mount Everest.

Being Nepal’s closest neighbour, India was the first responder to the crisis and sent help reportedly within “six to seven hours” of the disaster. Nepali ex-servicemen from the Gurkha Regiments were also pressed into service for guidance as well as relief and rescue operation.

The Air Force mobilised its Ilyushin II-76, C-130J Hercules, C-17 Globemaster, Mi-17 choppers and advanced light helicopters for the rescue and relief operation.

Operation Raahat

Operation Raahat was conducted by the Indian Armed Forces to rescue Indians and foreign nationals from Yemen during the intervention of the Yemeni government and other Arab states against Houthi rebels in 2015. While the military intervention by a Saudi Arabia-led coalition of Arab states began on March 25, 2015, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs had asked its nationals to leave Yemen way back on January 21.  Around 5,000 Indians had not taken the MEA’s advisories seriously even though it issued the third one on March 25, two days before the attack by the Arab coalition.

Around 5,600 Indians were rescued in the evacuation that followed. Of them, 2,900 were evacuated by 18 special flights from Sana’a while 1,670 were brought back in navy ships. Around 960 foreign nationals from 26 countries were also rescued by India as a goodwill gesture.

Operation Sukoon

Launched by the Indian Navy during the Israel-Lebanon War in 2006, Operation Sukoon saw the rescue of 2,280 people including 1,764 Indians, 112 Sri Lankans, 64 Nepalese and seven Lebanese citizens among other foreign nationals.

The Indian government initiated the mission, also known as the ‘Beirut Sealift’ after a military conflict broke out between Israel and the Hezbollah (a Lebanese Shia Islamist militant group). While Israel retaliated to attacks by the militant group by bombing and invading Lebanon, several foreign nationals were caught in the crossfire. While one Indian was killed in the conflict, the lives of around 2,000 were at risk.

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The Indian Navy Task Force 54, comprising three warships and a fleet tanker was sent to the war zone to evacuate Indians and stranded foreigners.

1990 airlift of Indians from Kuwait

One of the popular rescue missions in India’s history of evacuation, it was biggest of its kind until the Indian government launched the Vande Bharat Mission in 2020.

Around 1,70,000 people were evacuated in special Air India flights between August 13 and October 20, 1900 during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Air India entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the evacuation of the most number of people by a civil airliner.