The tsunami brings us together

Bush’s conversation with Singh could well mark a navigational correction. US, Japan, Australia are to form, with India as the lynchpin, a core group to cope with unprecedented devastation stretching across ten countries and two continents.The architecture of this group has been discussed by External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh and Secretary of State Colin Powell. Their counterparts in Japan and Australia have already been brought into play.

Meanwhile tele-conferences have taken place between Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran, US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Mark Grossman and their respective Australian and Japanese counterparts. But the entire project has yet to be fine tuned. The US Naval carrier Lincoln is on its way from the Pacific to be configured with other vessels. The Indian Armed Forces have already embarked on one of the biggest rescue and reconstruction missions in their history. So far advanced is this reconstruction effort that destroyed bridges like the one at Karaikal on the mouth of the Kaveri have been replaced in record time. Elements in the core group are in the process of creating a network with all the affected countries.

Among the first foreign missions to contact the ministry of external affairs has been that of Israel. Over 150 Israeli tourists were in the Andamans and their whereabouts were not known. Could Israel send a special plane to rescue them? The mission was told that Indian Airlines had diverted several flights to rescue passengers from Port Blair. It transpired that 26 of the Israelis were already on their way home. The remainder did not find the tsunami sufficiently intimidating for them to terminate their holidays.

Queries from the world have been varied: Turkey inquired if its rescue teams were required. A White American couple is eager to adopt “two or three” orphaned children. Venezuela and Singapore have offered satellite phones and other communications equipment. The Indian government’s response, in the meanwhile, has been bald: “There is no requirement in India for external assistance. In case such a need arises in the future, governments concerned will be contacted…In respect of countries seeking to send relief supplies to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, the governments concerned may be informed that the Indian authorities will provide full logistical support to them.”

The idea of a “core” group of major countries in the region and the US is subsequent to policy announcement mentioned above. At present, important ministries were examining the pros and cons (including the security aspects) of a foreign flotilla involved in rescue and relief in sensitive areas like the islands south of Car Nicobar. The way the script is evolving major relief and rescue efforts will be monitored, even controlled. by India.

One of the most devastated and inaccessible regions is Aceh, at the northern tip of Indonesia. New Delhi has excellent relations with Jakarta and its sensitivities will be taken into account before India leads a multinational effort in a region devastated beyond description. While damage on the Andaman islands has been enormous, it is the southern group of islands, extending from Car Nicobar up to Campbell Bay and Indira Point (the southern-most point), barely 90 miles north of earthquake’s epicentre, where the unspeakable damage is still unknown because of inaccessibility.

Of the 200 based at the airforce station on Car Nicobar, which has been washed away, half are missing. How Group Capt Bandopadhya and Wing Cdr Maheshwari saved themselves by latching on to trees and floating on gas cylinders is the stuff adventure movies are made of. Most of these islands are inaccessible because jetties have crashed, choking the harbours. Heavy light helicopters of the Indian Air Force and, if the offer from the US is cleared, from US ships diverted from the Pacific Command, will be crucial in air lifting some of the remote tribes resident on these islands.

At least 30 Indians on holiday in Thailand are missing. But amidst the devastation and grief, there are the lucky ones too. People like Omar Abdullah and his family, who happened to be on a beach not affected by the tsunami. To think that they had at first thought of holidaying in Phuket!