India's Bold Moves to Rescue Citizens in Global Crises
When disaster or conflict erupts, some countries scramble, others spring into action. India has made a name for itself as the go-to nation for daring evacuation missions. It’s not just about flights and ships—these missions often unfold in the world’s most unpredictable hotspots, and India has proved its mettle time and again.
Let’s flashback to 1990. Iraq invades Kuwait, and chaos breaks loose. The sheer scale of the Kuwait Airlift still takes the breath away. Over 170,000 Indians needed to get out, fast. India’s government coordinated 488 Air India flights, pulling off what the Guinness Book calls history’s biggest civilian evacuation. In the middle of a war zone, Indian planes became lifelines, carrying families away from tanks and shellfire. It wasn’t just logistics—it was hope with wings.
Fast forward to Lebanon, 2006. Israel and Hezbollah trade rockets, and violence surges. Under Operation Sukoon, Indian naval ships braved the eastern Mediterranean, rescuing not just Indians but also Nepalis and Sri Lankans. Nearly 2,300 people were packed onto warships and ferried to safety across the ocean—proof that India’s crisis response doesn’t stop at its own borders.
When Libya plunged into chaos in 2011, the Indian Navy and Air India teamed up for Operation Safe Homecoming. The civil war made airspace dodgy, so India’s rescue drill pulled in ships as well, extracting more than 15,000 Indians in a mission that blended landings with sea crossings. Ordinary folks—engineers, nurses, teachers—got seats home because India took action when others hesitated.
These efforts kept picking up momentum. A devastating earthquake shook Nepal in 2015, flattening buildings and trapping thousands. Operation Maitri wasn’t only about getting people out—it sent relief supplies in, and brought home stranded Indians along with Americans, Russians, Brits, and Germans. Suddenly, Indian C-17s weren’t just national jets—they were international rescue squads.
The same year, Yemen descended into war. Saudi airstrikes led to a total no-fly zone, but under Operation Raahat, India pulled strings, negotiated desperately, and launched flights and naval sorties. Rough seas and sniper fire didn’t stop Indian commanders from saving over 5,600 people, including foreign citizens who found national support missing from elsewhere.
Adapting to New Threats: Pandemics, Earthquakes, and Civil Wars
Recent years brought new challenges. The pandemic grounded planes worldwide, but India’s Operation Samudra Setu and the Vande Bharat Mission ran special flights and naval runs from the Maldives, UAE, and almost every corner of the globe. Over 2.3 million Indians—students, workers, tourists—got home even as borders slammed shut for everyone else.
The formula worked again during the 2022 Russia-Ukraine war, with Operation Ganga. As tanks rolled into Ukrainian cities, about 16,000 Indian students—mostly young people studying medicine and engineering—called for help. India’s government deployed special flights, rerouted bus convoys, and even sent top ministers to the Polish and Hungarian borders to manage evacuations. Parents kept phones glued to their ears until that welcome call: "We’re out, we’re safe, we’re coming home." Not many countries matched this level of on-ground attention.
Evacuations haven’t just been about war. In the 2018 cyclone that struck Yemen’s Socotra Island, Operation Nistar sent India's Navy through violent seas to rescue dozens of Indians stranded by monster waves. When terrorist attacks swept Brussels in 2016, India’s quick diplomatic response pulled 40 citizens out of harm’s way.
There’s also the softer side—Operation Insaniyat demonstrated India’s willingness to offer humanitarian aid, this time to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh fleeing violence in Myanmar. Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria in 2023 triggered Operation Dost, so India wasn’t just evacuating its own—it deployed search and rescue teams to dig survivors out of rubble, proving these missions aren’t just about flights or ships, but first response too.
The playbook has grown smarter: sudden civil war in Sudan in 2023 launched Operation Kaveri, which saw Indian naval ships, military planes, and a meticulous on-ground coordination to evacuate 2,500 people from chaos. Each operation builds on lessons from the last: quicker coordination among the Ministry of External Affairs, Defence, and Civil Aviation; better use of technology; and a network of Indian embassies prepped for the worst.
India's steady hand in evacuation missions is now part of its identity on the global stage. Whether it’s war, natural disasters, or global health crises, the message is pretty clear—if you're in trouble, India won’t leave you behind.
