Three Warships Reach India, With Oxygen and Med Supplies

NEW DELHI: Three Indian warships, with large containers full of oxygen, cylinders, and other medical supplies from overseas, arrived in the country on Monday under the ongoing Operation Samudra Setu-II program launched by the Navy.

The Stealth frigate INS Trikand arrived in Mumbai carrying 40 metric ton (MT) oxygen medical oxygen in cryogenic vessels from Hamad Port in Doha in Qatar. “This burden is part of France’s ‘Oxygen Solidarity Bridge,’ with its mission in Qatar, to support India’s war against the Covid-19 epidemic,” said Army spokesman Vivek Madhwal.

The India-French initiative aims to ship more than 600 MT of liquid oxygen to India in the next two months. Destroyer INS Kolkata also arrived in New Mangalore harbor with two 27MT containers filled with liquid oxygen, 400 cylinders, and other oxygen mixtures launched in Qatar and Kuwait.

Similarly, the INS Airavat submarine arrived in Visakhapatnam with 20 empty cryogenic tanks and 3,898 cylinders, as well as other medical equipment such as oxygen concentrators, rapid antigen test kits, and 450 PPE suits, from Singapore.

“These three warships are the ninth division under Operation Samudra Setu-II to supply liquid medical oxygen and associated medical equipment from friendly countries overseas in the Persian Gulf and southeast Asia. Two more warships are en route to India from Kuwait, while one is still in Brunei for treatment,” said Commander Madhwal.