India dispatches relief material to calamity-hit Indonesia

Three Indian Navy ships, namely Tir, Sujata and Shardul, were dispatched with relief material to calamity-hit Indonesia, according to the Indian Navy spokesperson.

This came a few hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended all assistance to Indonesian President Joko Widodo on a phone call while offering condolences.

Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force (IAF) spokesperson said that two IAF aircraft, a C130J and a C17, have been loaded with relief material including "15.66T of tentage and generators, 16T of medicines" which have been sent by the National Disaster Management Authority. The planes are en route Chennai and will set course for Makassar, Indonesia by Tuesday evening.

The Indian Navy further said that the ships, which are on deployment to Singapore, were diverted to Palu (Indonesia) yesterday. They carry bricks, 30000 litres of bottled drinking water, 1500 litres of packed juices, 500 litres of milk, 700 kilograms of biscuits, 20 tents along with humanitarian aid and disaster relief.

Earlier, Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) had confirmed that the death toll has risen due to the earthquake and tsunami to 1,234 on Tuesday, according to a report by Al Jazeera. The BNPB also confirmed that over 500 people have been injured, while 16,372 have been displaced due to the calamity.

Sulawesi, an island in Indonesia, was struck by two powerful earthquakes, measuring 7.7 and 6.1 on the Richter scale, and a tsunami on Friday causing a multitudinous loss of human lives and widespread displacement.

-ANI