New Delhi, March 28 Continuing with its role of being a first responder in the region and extending emergency humanitarian assistance in the wake of natural disasters, India on Friday said that it remains in touch with the authorities in Myanmar to provide relief to the country which was rocked by a powerful earthquake, earlier in the day.
"Insofar as relief and assistance is concerned, we are currently analysing the reports related to the damage, primarily in Myanmar. We are in touch with the official authorities in Myanmar and are also looking at the exact requirements in terms of the assistance and relief that might be required. India has always been the first responder whenever such kind of disasters have taken place," Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said during a special media briefing in New Delhi.
A massive 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar on Friday and was followed by an aftershock of 6.4 magnitude just 12 minutes later. While initial reports indicate that around 20 people have died in Myanmar, it is believed that given the
the catastrophic scale of the disaster, the death toll could rise considerably in the coming hours.
"The BIMSTEC region is prone to extreme weather events and natural disasters. Its relevance can be seen today in the devastating earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand. Collaboration in disaster management and between our disaster management authorities through Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercises, has been a priority area for India," said Jaideep Mazumdar, Secretary (East) at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
With earthquake also impacting Thailand, the Secretary, however, said that there are no indications currently of it impacting the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit which is scheduled to be held in Bangkok from April 2-4 and will see attendance of many top leaders of the region, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"We are in touch with the authorities in Bangkok on this. There is nothing at the moment to indicate either way that it (the earthquake) is going to have any impact on the summit," said Mazumdar.
Earlier, PM Modi had expressed his concerns over the powerful earthquake that struck Myanmar and Thailand while assuring India's readiness to provide all possible assistance to the affected regions.
Taking to X, PM Modi posted, "Concerned by the situation in the wake of the Earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand. Praying for the safety and wellbeing of everyone."
"India stands ready to offer all possible assistance. In this regard, we have asked our authorities to be on standby. Also asked the MEA to remain in touch with the Governments of Myanmar and Thailand," he added.
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