Emergency relief materials are unloaded from an Indian Air Force helicopter after arriving at Mon on July 24. The supplies were airlifted from Dimapur by the Nagaland State Disaster Management Authority for flood-affected areas. (DIPR File Photo)
Dimpur, July 28 (MExN): The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Tuesday concluded its six-day humanitarian air operations in flood-affected parts of Nagaland after airlifting 6.85 metric tonnes of essential relief materials and evacuating 64 stranded people on the final day of the mission, officials said.
The operations supported relief distribution and evacuation efforts in EAC Headquarters Namsang, Tamlu Headquarters and Longleng district.
Two IAF helicopters began the day's operations by transporting 3.30 metric tonnes of essential relief materials to EAC Headquarters Namsang in two sorties.
After delivering the supplies, one helicopter conducted a reconnaissance landing at Tamlu Headquarters before evacuating 22 stranded passengers to Dimapur Airport.
The second helicopter proceeded to Mohanbari Airport in Assam after completing its permissible flying hours for the day.
The first helicopter later carried an additional 1.70 metric tonnes of relief materials to Tamlu Headquarters and evacuated another 19 stranded passengers to Dimapur.
In its fourth sortie, the helicopter transported the remaining 1.85 metric tonnes of relief supplies to Tamlu. As no stranded passengers remained there, it proceeded to Longleng and evacuated 23 more people, including a child, to Dimapur Airport.
In all, the IAF airlifted 3.30 metric tonnes of relief materials to Namsang and 3.55 metric tonnes to Tamlu, taking the day's total to 6.85 metric tonnes.
Officials said the IAF evacuated 64 stranded passengers, including students and patients, during the day's operations.
With all essential relief materials earmarked for Namsang and Tamlu delivered, the IAF concluded its deployment in support of the Nagaland government's flood relief operations and demobilised its helicopters on Tuesday.
However, as the final sortie was completed after 5 pm due to operational constraints, the helicopters and personnel remained at Dimapur overnight and are scheduled to return to their respective base on Wednesday.
Over the six-day mission, the IAF ensured uninterrupted delivery of essential relief supplies and safely evacuated stranded residents from flood-affected areas despite adverse weather and difficult terrain.
The Nagaland government expressed gratitude to the Indian Air Force for its professionalism, commitment and timely humanitarian assistance, saying its support significantly strengthened the state's disaster response efforts and provided timely relief to affected communities.
