India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is set to visit Sri Lanka next week, a trip coming at a time when Delhi immediately reached out to its neighbour amid ongoing recovery from one of the country’s worst natural disasters in decades.
The visit follows India’s swift and extensive humanitarian response to Cyclone Ditwah, which struck Sri Lanka on 27 November 2025, triggering catastrophic floods and landslides that have claimed over 500 lives and affected millions.
India launched Operation Sagar Bandhu immediately after the cyclone made landfall, becoming the first nation to deploy specialised disaster responders. Within hours, Indian naval ships already in Colombo for a fleet review, including aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, handed over initial relief supplies.
Over the ensuing days, India airlifted tonnes of essentials via Indian Air Force aircraft, including tents, blankets, hygiene kits, medicines and modular trauma units known as BHISHM Cubes.
Elite National Disaster Response Force teams, equipped with search dogs, were deployed to hard-hit areas like Badulla and Gampaha, rescuing over 450 people from flooded homes and landslide debris.
Helicopters from INS Vikrant and IAF Mi-17s conducted sustained air rescues, evacuating vulnerable groups and delivering aid to isolated regions.
An Indian Army field hospital in Badulla district treated thousands, while engineers airlifted Bailey bridges to restore severed road links. Naval vessels later ferried hundreds of tonnes of dry rations, including contributions from Tamil Nadu, to ports in Colombo and Trincomalee.
Sri Lankan authorities have praised the operation’s speed and coordination, with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake describing the cyclone as the most challenging disaster in recent history.
EAM Jaishankar’s upcoming India visit is expected to focus on continued reconstruction support, reflecting India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy and shared maritime interests.
Source: WION
--Agencies
