Mission Sagar: INS Kesari Sets Sail With Food, Medicines For 5 Island Countries

New Delhi: Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kesari on Sunday set sail for the Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros as part of the Union government’s outreach to assist in the global fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

It’s being called Mission Sagar, and is part of the government’s vision of security and growth for all in the region ‘Sagar’.

The ship is loaded with various food items, medicines including the much-in-demand hydrochloroquine tablets and special Ayurvedic medicines for the five island countries on the Indian Ocean.

Medical assistance teams are also on board INS Kesari and will attend to cases in any of the above countries requiring assistance.

This deployment is in line with India’s role as the first responder in the region and builds on the excellent relations among these countries to battle the global pandemic which has killed over 2.8 lakh people across the world.

As part of Mission Sagar, INS Kesari’s first port of call will be Male in the Republic of Maldives, to provide them 600 tonnes of food provisions, according to a Defence Ministry intimation.