Government officials welcome an Indian national on arrival from troubled Afghanistan by an Indian Air Force C-17 aircraft in Jamnagar.
India’s Afghanistan Rescue Mission: A C-17 Globemaster aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) took off from Kabul and landed in Jamnagar on Tuesday evening. The flight with over 120 Indian diplomats, officials and journalists had taken off from Kabul International Airport earlier in the day under test conditions in the wake of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
The IAF is known to carry out such rescue operations, however, the withdrawal of US forces after the Taliban’s rapid capture of Afghanistan made this particular operation more challenging.
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The world witnessed the chaotic scene at Kabul International Airport on August 16, making it impossible for any aircraft to land or take off. The US military, which is still commanding the airport, had a tough time handling the sea of Afghans Somehow they leave the country for fear of Taliban attack.
Sources said that for evacuation, India stationed its C-17 at Ayni Air Base in Tajikistan as there was heavy rush at Kabul airport. He said the IAF’s jumbo aircraft was on standby at Ayani Air Base and took off for Kabul after being cleared by the US, which controls the Kabul airport.
Hundreds of people tried to board the plane at Kabul airport after the Taliban takeover. Video
Sources said that India is also exploring options to hire charter planes to evacuate more Indians from Afghanistan.
PM Modi is monitoring the evacuation of the Air Force from Afghanistan
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is constantly in touch with the officials regarding the situation. He was taking stock of the situation till late last night and was updated as the flight took off. Sources said that he directed that adequate arrangements should be made to provide food to all those returning to Jamnagar.
Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan Rudendra Tandon told reporters in Jamnagar that the situation in Kabul is now complex and “quite fluid” and Indians stranded in the city will be brought back home when commercial flight services resume.
“Happy to be back home safe and sound. We are on a huge mission.
We are a mission of 192 personnel who were pulled out of Afghanistan literally within three days in a very systematic manner in two phases.”
Tandon, who took over as the Indian ambassador to Afghanistan in August last year, said the embassy assisted and provided shelter to many distressed Indians following the rapidly changing situation in Kabul.
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