India on Friday extended humanitarian assistance to Sri Lanka following widespread destruction caused by Cyclone Ditwah, which has claimed at least 56 lives and severely disrupted normal life across large parts of the island nation. Relief materials and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) support have been dispatched under Operation Sagar Bandhu.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences to the people of Sri Lanka and reiterated India’s commitment to stand with its maritime neighbour during the crisis. In a message posted on social media, the Prime Minister said India had urgently sent relief material and essential assistance, adding that further aid would be provided as the situation unfolds, guided by the Neighbourhood First policy and Vision MAHASAGAR.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar confirmed that Indian Naval Ship Vikrant and Indian Naval Ship Udaigiri have delivered relief supplies at Colombo, marking the commencement of Operation Sagar Bandhu. He said additional measures were being taken to scale up assistance if required.
According to Sri Lanka’s Disaster Management Centre, Cyclonic Storm Ditwah has resulted in 56 fatalities, left 14 people injured and 21 missing. The DMC reported that 43,991 people from 12,313 families have been affected by the extreme weather event. Structural damage has also been reported, with four houses completely destroyed and 666 partially damaged.
Heavy rainfall, flooding and landslides continue to affect daily life in several regions of Sri Lanka, exacerbating the humanitarian situation. Transport and aviation services have also been disrupted. Airport authorities reported that 15 inbound flights were diverted from Bandaranaike International Airport late Thursday night due to unsafe landing conditions. Flights were rerouted to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport, as well as to Trivandrum and Cochin in India.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department issued a cyclone alert for north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and adjoining south Andhra Pradesh coasts. The department said Cyclonic Storm Ditwah, centered over coastal Sri Lanka and the adjoining southwest Bay of Bengal, moved north-northwestwards at a speed of 10 kmph over the past six hours.
As of 8:30 am on November 28, the storm was located about 40 km southwest of Trincomalee, 100 km northwest of Batticaloa, 320 km south-southeast of Karaikal, 430 km south-southeast of Puducherry and 530 km south of Chennai.
The IMD said the system is very likely to continue moving north-northwestwards across Sri Lanka and the adjoining southwest Bay of Bengal, reaching near the coasts of north Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and south Andhra Pradesh by the early hours of November 30.
Authorities on both sides continue to closely monitor the evolving weather situation and its impacts.
