Two Decades Of Disaster Relief: How India Cemented Its Status As A Global First Responder | Explainers News

Last Updated:December 01, 2025, 14:55 IST

India’s swift response to Sri Lanka’s Cyclone Ditwah is the latest example of its first-responder role in major disasters

This established role is visible once again in Sri Lanka, where catastrophic flooding and landslides triggered by Cyclone Ditwah have left hundreds dead and over a million displaced. India’s latest operation, Sagar Bandhu, fits into a broader HADR (humanitarian assistance and disaster relief) framework built steadily since the mid-2000s.

Operation Sagar Bandhu (Sri Lanka, November 2025)

Sri Lanka is witnessing its worst natural disaster in two decades. Floods and landslides caused by Cyclone Ditwah have killed over 330 people and affected more than 1.3 million across the island. Several areas remain isolated, especially in the central region, as mudslides and fallen trees cut road access. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake declared a state of emergency and said the affected regions would be rebuilt with international support.

India activated Operation Sagar Bandhu and began deploying aircraft, helicopters, relief cargo and rescue personnel. Under the initiative, the Indian Air Force (IAF) evacuated more than 300 stranded Indian nationals. The final group of 104 people arrived in Thiruvananthapuram at around 6.30 am on Monday.

The same IL-76 and C-130J heavy-lift aircraft that transported NDRF teams and humanitarian supplies into Sri Lanka were used to fly these passengers home.

India also supplied nearly 21 tonnes of essential relief items, including tents, blankets, mattresses, dignity kits and other emergency materials.

IAF helicopters have flown multiple missions into cut-off areas. They have airlifted 57 Sri Lankan Army personnel from Diyathalawa Army Camp and Colombo to Kotmale, a landslide-hit region in the central province that remains completely inaccessible by road. A total of 55 civilians—Indians, foreign nationals and Sri Lankan survivors—have been evacuated to Colombo. The two Indian helicopters involved in the operation have flown more than 12 sorties so far.

Chetak helicopters from INS Vikrant have transported people to safer locations. NDRF teams are conducting rescue work in the badly affected areas of Puttalam and Badulla.

This rapid mobilisation is consistent with India’s approach in major regional disasters over the last two decades.

How India Became A Regional First Responder

India has extended humanitarian help abroad since the early years after Independence, beginning with relief for Tibetan refugees fleeing China in 1959 and assistance to Bangladesh during cyclones and famine in the 1970s. It also supported relief and reconstruction efforts during Sri Lanka’s civil war.

But limitations in financial resources and disaster-response capacity restricted India’s ability to conduct large-scale overseas operations. This changed after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

The tsunami killed more than 200,000 people across Asia, including 16,000 in India. Despite facing immense devastation at home, India dispatched naval vessels and aircraft to Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia.

“In 2004, India’s capacity as a first responder was recognised by other major countries in the region, particularly by the US. Indian naval vessels were the first to reach the devastated Indonesian province of Aceh, which even the Indonesians found difficult to reach because it was very remote. That was when India’s profile as a first responder began to grow,” a senior official in the Ministry of External Affairs later observed.

The tsunami marked the beginning of India’s modern disaster diplomacy.

Building The Architecture: NDMA Act 2005 And The Rise Of NDRF

Recognising the long-term value of disaster-response capability, India passed the National Disaster Management Act in 2005. It created the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), initially comprising eight battalions trained exclusively for disaster rescue and relief. Over time, the NDRF became central to India’s humanitarian operations overseas.

India’s early global relief efforts still faced operational challenges, such as its delayed response to the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. But by the middle of the next decade, India’s response capacity had significantly improved.

The watershed moment was the 2015 Nepal earthquake. Under Operation Maitri, India conducted what is described as its largest foreign disaster-relief deployment. NDRF teams rescued 11 survivors from the rubble. Former NDRF Director General O.P. Singh said, “We were the first international rescue team in Nepal. Within hours, we had equipment, rescue teams, and canines on the ground. For the first time, we received global recognition.”

This cemented India’s position as the region’s fastest-moving disaster responder.

Major Operations Launched By India

Operation Brahma (Myanmar, 2025)

A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar on 28 March 2025, killing over 2,000 people. India launched Operation Brahma to provide necessary support, including Search and Rescue (SAR), humanitarian aid, disaster relief and medical assistance. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Myanmar’s military chief Min Aung Hlaing that “India stands in solidarity with the people of Myanmar in this difficult hour.”

Under the operation, India provided relief supplies of approx 750 MT, including essential medicines, foodgrain, ready-to-eat meals, tents, blankets, gensets, rapidly deployable surgical and medical shelters, water, sanitation and hygiene services, drinking water, essential clothing, 20 prefabricated office/residential structures, etc.

Further, humanitarian assistance consisting of an 80-member NDRF Heavy Urban Search and Rescue Specialists Team and a 127-member Indian Army field Hospital Team were also deployed.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had said that when India says “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, “we also want to mean it. We want to prove that by action, and therefore, you know, we are very humbled when we have this opportunity to respond to a crisis such as what has happened in Myanmar and extend our support to people.”

Operation Sadbhav (Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, 2024)

When Typhoon Yagi struck Southeast Asia in September 2024, India launched Operation Sadbhav to support Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar.

Under the mission:

• India sent 10 tonnes of dry rations, clothing and medicines to Myanmar aboard INS Satpura.
• 35 tonnes of relief supplies to Vietnam on an IAF C-17 aircraft, including water purification items, water containers, blankets, kitchen utensils and solar lanterns.

India’s foreign ministry said Operation Sadbhav formed part of its broader effort to contribute to HADR within the ASEAN region, aligned with the Act East Policy.

Typhoon Yagi caused over 220 deaths in Vietnam and more than 70 in Myanmar. Myanmar’s military government said the typhoon displaced nearly 240,000 people, in addition to 3.4 million already displaced by conflict.

Operation Dost (Türkiye and Syria, 2023)

After a 7.7-magnitude earthquake devastated Türkiye and Syria in February 2023, India launched Operation Dost.

India deployed NDRF search-and-rescue teams, its canine squad, and an Indian Army field hospital in Iskenderun, Hatay, treating the injured in a heavily affected zone.

India also sent more than six tonnes of relief material to Syria. On questions about aid to a country facing US sanctions, MEA secretary Sanjay Verma said India followed the G20 mantra of “One Earth, One Family, One Future”, adding that “Sanctions don’t cover such humanitarian assistance.”

Operation Karuna (Myanmar, 2023)

Cyclone Mocha hit Myanmar and Bangladesh in May 2023, causing extensive damage. India launched Operation Karuna to support affected areas, especially in Myanmar.

Under this mission, four Indian ships carried emergency food supplies, tents, essential medicines, water pumps, portable generators, clothing, and sanitary and hygiene items to Yangon.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, “India continues to be the first responder in the region.”

Operation Maitri (Nepal, 2015)

After the 2015 Nepal earthquake, India launched Operation Maitri, its largest-ever foreign disaster-relief effort at the time.

India sent:

• 33 Air Force aircraft carrying 520 tonnes of material such as tents, blankets, medicines, cooking material, food, water, engineering equipment, ambulances, RO plants and oxygen generators.
• Eight Mi-17 and five ALH helicopters that ferried more than 207 tonnes of relief and evacuated over 900 injured people.
• Helicopters also transported more than 1,700 stranded people of various nationalities.

Why India Invests In Disaster Diplomacy

India’s expanding disaster-relief footprint serves both humanitarian and strategic objectives.

One major factor is the way rapid and visible HADR missions enhance India’s global stature. Over the past two decades, India has demonstrated that it can respond quickly to crises across regions as diverse as Japan, Nepal, Myanmar and Türkiye. These operations reinforce India’s profile as a country capable of mobilising specialised teams, aircraft, ships and medical units at short notice.

Disaster relief also strengthens bilateral relationships. India’s large-scale deployment after the 2015 Nepal earthquake, for instance, played an important role in deepening goodwill in Kathmandu at a critical moment.

India has further used HADR missions to maintain engagement even where political differences exist. Its decision to send emergency teams and an Army field hospital to Türkiye in 2023, despite disagreements between the two governments, is an example of India keeping humanitarian assistance separate from political disputes.

Looking ahead, the demand for disaster relief is expected to rise sharply as climate impacts intensify. India has been expanding its NDRF capacity and military lift capability to meet this challenge, positioning disaster diplomacy as an increasingly important part of its external outreach.

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