The struggle for dominance in Yemen between the Sunni and Zaidi
Shia sects has accentuated into a civil war and has now turned into a Regional
conflict. Fearing Iranian dominance on the situation, Saudi Arabia
launched an extensive air raid, killing people indiscriminately. When the
danger to life escalated, most western embassies closed shop and left the
country with their staff. By mid March 2015, Yemen had become a lawless
land and the fate of thousands of Indians working in the country hung in a delicate
balance.
The Government of India made a historic decision of risking the
odds and attempting to rescue the compatriots. On March 31st, Gen. V.K.
Singh was sent to Yemen to coordinate operation 'Rahat'. Air India,
Indian Air Force, two merchant vessels, warships Destroyer Mumbai and stealth
frigage Tarkash, INS Sumitra and Indian Shipping Corporation's Kavaratti and
Corals were all pressed into service to save the lives of Indians caught in
the conflict. Prime Minister Modi called the King of Saudi Arabia to halt
the air strikes at the time of critical rescue. Foreign Minister Sushma
Swaraj monitored the situation minute by minute. Gen. V.K. Singh roamed
the streets in Yemen personally to locate and pull out Indians in trouble. Looking at Indian determination, 26 nations reached out to India,
including USA, Germany and France to help rescue their citizens.
While a host of commercial airlines in India were vying to book
profits, Air India carried 488 people through special flights from Sana'a to
India on April 5th. On one haul, it evacuated 574 people from Sana'a to
Djibouti, described as the single largest evacuation by air anywhere in the
world in a single day. Indian Air Force helicopter C-17 on April 2nd,
brought back 358 Indians. The lifeboats of the ships went into the
harbour under constant cross-firing and bombing to ferry thousands of Indians
into the ships, so that they could be brought to India. At the end,
Indian Railways offered free trips to the evacuees to reach home safely, besides
receiving appropriate financial support.
This is a matter of immense national pride and is unprecedented
in the history of free India. Most nations took a bow at the courage,
valour, determination and timely action of India. But it is a crying
shame that sections of Indian media and the political opposition would not
celebrate this grand display of patriotism and humanitarian concern. It
is a shame that many of them continued to bathe in negativity and trivial
pursuits of populism, even in this situation of grave concern and commendable
nationalism.
Most of India has felt
honoured to share the historic national pride. But some in the Media and in the
Opposition have shamed themselves with their irrational neglect.
V K Saxena
President
National Council for Civil Liberties
Ahmedabad
