NEW DELHI // India stepped up its mammoth relief effort in earthquake-hit Nepal on Sunday, dispatching planeloads of supplies and personnel as tremors continued to ripple through the region.
The Indian aid effort, dubbed Operation Maitri, meaning “amity”, began within hours after the 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck its northern neighbour.
Four Indian Air Force transport aircraft landed in Kathmandu on Saturday evening, carrying doctors as well as 450 members of India’s National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF).
Another six NDRF teams were shuttled to Nepal on Sunday, raising the total number of relief personnel to 720.
The Indian operation is part of an international effort to assist those affected by the earthquake, many of whom live in remote areas made more inaccessible by landslides and bad weather.
The United States announced an initial aid package of US$1 million (Dh3.67m) for relief efforts and its international assistance agency USAID sent disaster assistance and rescue teams to assess the situation, as well as medical experts to work with Nepal’s army.
The French government sent a team of 11 rescue workers and emergency supplies, while the International Search and Rescue Germany, a relief organisation, flew in 52 personnel and dog squads to search for people trapped under rubble.
India’s defence minister, Manohar Parrikar, stressed his country’s “long cultural and family ties” with Nepal, saying, “We are obligated to help the country in their hour of need.”
The home minister, Rajnath Singh, ordered camps to be set up along the border with Nepal to assist people crossing into India on foot.
On the home ministry’s direction, the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, which border Nepal, will mobilise a fleet of ambulances and relief lorries to help with rescue efforts.
India’s health ministry flew a 34-member medical team to Kathmandu as well, as well as 15 tonnes of medical supplies.
“The team consists of 10 orthopaedic surgeons, four anaesthetists, 12 male nurses and eight [surgical] technicians to the earthquake-affected areas of Nepal to provide emergency medical relief,” the ministry said.
The Indian air force deployed a dozen helicopters to assist the Nepali government with its reconnaissance and rescue missions.
“The plan is to drop relief supplies in worst-affected valleys in case landing is not possible,” Sitanshu Kar, a defence ministry spokesperson, told the IANS news agency. “The helicopters are flying almost non-stop since this morning.”
Air force planes also ferried water, food, blankets, tents and teams of army engineers to Nepal.
New Delhi has also arranged to quickly provide visas free of charge to tourists stranded in Nepal and hoping to leave for India before flying to their home countries.
India began evacuating its own citizens on Saturday, with the first air force flight returning late on Saturday night with 55 people, including four babies. A second flight arrived early on Sunday, with 101 people.
And additional 546 Indians were flown out of Kathmandu by midday on Sunday.
Even so, people formed a line of a kilometre outside Kathmandu airport, hoping to take one of the infrequent flights out of the country. According to one estimate, more than 3,000 Indians were stranded at the airport as of Sunday evening, waiting for an evacuation.
Operation Maitri builds upon relief skills put into practice over the past year, first with the floods in the state of Jammu & Kashmir in September and then with the evacuation of Indians from strife-torn Yemen earlier this month.
"We have never operated in Nepal earlier," Sandeep Rathore, an NDRF official, told the Indian Express newspaper. "But the experience gained during flood operations in Jammu & Kashmir taught us lessons that can be implemented in Nepal."
More than 2,500 people were confirmed dead in the earthquake, the worst to hit Nepal in 80 years. Another 5,500 were estimated to be seriously injured.
More than 50 people died in India due to the earthquake.
ssubramanian@thenational.ae
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
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How to apply for a drone permit
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What are the regulations?
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Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
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Sector: FinTech
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In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
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Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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Name: Kumulus Water
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Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Electric scooters: some rules to remember
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
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- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
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