SAMUDRA SETU-II

• Indian Navy has launched Operation Samudra Setu-II for shipment of Oxygen-filled containers to India.
• Operation Samudra Setu was launched in May 2020 as part of the national effort to repatriate Indian citizens from overseas during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Important points:

Operation Samudra Setu-II:

• Seven Indian Naval ships viz. Kolkata, Kochi, Talwar, Tabar, Trikand, Jalashwa and Airavat have been deployed for shipment of liquid medical oxygen-filled cryogenic containers and associated medical equipment from various countries.
• Two ships, the INS Kolkata and INS Talwar, have entered the Port of Manama, Bahrain, to carry back 40 tonnes of liquid oxygen to Mumbai.
• The INS Jalashwa is enroute to Bangkok while the INS Airavat is on its way to Singapore on similar missions

Operation Samudra Setu:

• It was launched along with Vande Bharat Mission (VBM).
• VBM is the biggest civilian evacuation exercise to bring back Indian citizens stranded abroad amidst the coronavirus-induced travel restrictions.
• It has surpassed the large-scale airlift of 1,77,000 people in 1990 at the onset of the Gulf War.
• Indian Naval Ships Jalashwa and Airavat, Shardul and Magar participated in this operation.
• Around 4000 Indian citizens stranded in neighbouring countries, amidst Covid-19 outbreak, were successfully repatriated back to India.
• Indian Navy has previously undertaken similar evacuation operations as part of Operation Sukoon in 2006 (Beirut) and Operation Rahat in 2015 (Yemen).

SOURCE: THE HINDU ,THE ECONOMIC TIMES ,MINT