Operation Sanjeevani

Operation Sanjeevani: The Indian Air Force (IAF) conducted an 18-hour operation in which it flew 6.2 tonnes of crucial medicines and medical supplies to the Maldives using its C-130 cargo aircraft.

This is an important topic from the IAS exam perspective and candidates can get details about the operation and its background further below in this article.

What is Operation Sanjeevani?

During the global epidemic, the Indian Air Force (IAF) executed Mission Sanjeevani, an 18-hour operation in which it airlifted 6.2 tonnes of vital medications and medical supplies to the Maldives using its Hercules C-130 cargo aircraft. The drugs and consumables could not have been transported in any other way due to India’s countrywide lockdown, as declared by Prime Minister Modi.

After the Maldives government requested, the Indian Air Force started ‘Operation Sanjeevani’ to load and deliver crucial medicines and hospital supplies to the Maldives. Before being delivered to the Maldives, the drugs were hauled from airports in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Madurai with the assistance of the Indian Army.

All government exam aspirants must also read about India-Maldives relations at the linked article.

How was the Maldives aided?

Influenza vaccines and antiviral medications, including Lopinavir and Ritonavir, used to treat COVID-19 in other countries, have been given. In addition, catheters, nebulizers, urine bags, drugs for cardiac diseases, hypertension, infant feeding tubes, high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, allergies, kidney ailments, and cancer treatment have all been supplied, as well as anticonvulsants.

India also supplied 5.5 tonnes of crucial pharmaceuticals to the Maldives last month, in addition to these critical supplies. The Indian government has also dispatched a 14-member COVID-19 Rapid Response Group of doctors and specialists to the Maldives. In addition, the Indian government has evacuated nine Maldivians via Wuhan, China, where COVID-19 first was discovered.

The flights will carry cargo on both arriving and departing flights and will be conducted commercially in response to requests by pharmaceutical companies and their intermediaries. While the DGCA permitted airlines to transport cargo in passenger cabins and aircraft bellies, Air India is still waiting for approval from underwriters and Boeing to fully utilize its planes’ cargo carrying capabilities.

Mr. Bansal further stated that, depending on demand, freight flight frequencies might be raised.

The cargo operations would help the airline generate cash while passenger flights are prohibited, and the fleet is grounded.

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IAF and Maldive’s crisis

Before the global epidemic, India’s government aided the Maldives on numerous occasions. The Indian Armed Forces assisted the Maldives in neutralizing a coup attempt in 1998. Various supplies were sent following the tsunami that devastated the Maldives in 2004. The Indian government began Operation Neer in 2014 to provide safe drinking water here to the Maldives.

The Indian government is assisting its neighboring country, the Maldives, in the aftermath of the coronavirus outbreak. It is a developing example of India’s strategy of putting its neighbors first and the Maldives’ policy of putting India first. It’s worth noting that the Maldives was India’s first neighboring country to get critical medications in the fight against COVID-19.

Previous Aid to the Maldives

• 1988: The Indian Armed Forces assisted the Maldives government in neutralizing a coup attempt as part of Operation Cactus.
• 2004: Following the tsunami, India assisted the Maldives.
• In 2014, India sent drinking water to the Maldives as part of ‘Operation Neer,’ a response to the country’s drinking water issue.
• The two Significant Light Helicopters (ALH) donated here to Maldivian armed forces by India have been used to save lives.
• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s Advanced Light Helicopter is indeed a multi-role, next generational helicopter inside the 5.5-ton weight class that was conceived and constructed in India (HAL).

Countries’ Relational terms

Ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious, and commercial ties exist between India and the Maldives. After the Maldives gained independence in 1965, India was one of the first countries to recognize the country, and in 1972, it opened a mission in Male.

Defence: India supplies the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF) with the most training possibilities, providing roughly 70% of their defense training requirements.

‘Ekuverin’ is an Indian-Maldivian joint military drill.

Disaster Management: During the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami during the 2014 Male water problem, the Indian government gave large-scale aid to the Maldives.

After the United Arab Emirates, China, and Singapore, India is the Maldives’ fourth major trading partner. In 2018, India was the Maldives’ fifth-largest source of tourist arrivals. The Maldives’ economy relies primarily on tourism, which is the country’s primary source of foreign cash and government revenue.

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