Ukraine Crisis: India To Send First Consignment Of Relief Supplies To Ukraine Today, Bolster Evacuation Efforts

The decision was taken at a high level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday. 

Ukraine refugees | Photo: Getty

New Delhi: Amid humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, the Indian government has decided to send urgent relief supplies including medicines to the country. The first consignment of supplies will be dispatched today.

The decision was taken at a high level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday. 

The MEA in a statement released after the meeting said, "The prime minister noted that the first consignment of relief supplies to Ukraine to deal with the humanitarian situation on Ukraine’s borders would be despatched tomorrow."

Ambassador of India to United Nations, T S Tirumurti during his United Nations Security Council address also reiterated India's commitment to providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

"In such times of conflict, India attaches the highest priority to safety and well-being of civilians, in particular women, children and elderly. We are of the view that core principles of humanitarian assistance should be fully honoured," he said, as reported by news agency ANI.

Ukrainian ambassador to India, Igor Polikha, has also made an appeal to the Indian government for humanitarian assistance.

Meanwhile, India has stepped up its efforts to evacute all Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine. A group of four senior minsters has been formed by the government to coordinate rescue efforts with Ukrainian neighbours, Romania, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia as special envoys.

"The entire government machinery is working round the clock to ensure that all Indian nationals there are safe and secure," said PM Modi during the high level meeting Monday. 

Early on Tuesday, the seventh flight carrying 182 stranded Indian nationals in Ukraine reached the Mumbai International Airport from Bucharest (Romania) and were received by Union Minister Narayan Rane. So far, 1,396 Indian nationals have been brought back from Ukraine in six evacuation flights.