Indian Army field hospital begins operations in quake-hit Venezuela

Caracas: An Indian Army field hospital, deployed in earthquake-hit Venezuela under Operation Amistad, has become fully operational and is providing free round-the-clock medical services, officials said on Monday.

The Indian Embassy in Venezuela said an Indian medical team comprising highly experienced doctors has established a camp at the International La Rinconada Racetrack in Caracas.

The medical camp is "now fully operational. Services are open 24 hours. All services are free," it said in a social media post.


"Indian humanitarian relief operations stand in solidarity with Venezuelans in these difficult times," the mission said in another post.

India is extending a helping hand to the people of Venezuela in these difficult times, it said.

The 7.2 and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes that struck on Wednesday evening were among the strongest in Venezuela in more than a century and were felt throughout the region.

The death toll from two powerful quakes in Venezuela rose to 1,450 on Sunday, with thousands more injured and many more missing.

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, in a social media post, also said that Operation Amistad is "underway" in Venezuela.

The Army field hospital is extending "a caring hand to those impacted by the earthquake", he said.

Indian Army doctors are taking care of people, Jaiswal said, adding that the Venezuelan vice health minister and head of the Government of the Capital District of Venezuela visited the field hospital.

On Sunday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that relief supplies, medical equipment and the field hospital unit sent by India had reached Venezuela and would bolster the country's ongoing post-earthquake relief efforts.

Under Operation Amistad, launched by India to offer humanitarian assistance to Venezuela after the powerful earthquakes, two IAF C-17 Globemaster aircraft transported 66 tonnes of aid, including the Indian Army field hospital, over 35 tonnes of relief supplies, medicines and medical equipment, and two BHISHM Cubes, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said on Sunday.

Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita & Maitri (BHISHM) cubes are mobile hospitals aimed at providing emergency medical care.

The two aircraft completed a 23-hour flight covering an aerial distance of over 14,000 km from Delhi to Caracas.

"India stands shoulder to shoulder with the government and the people of Venezuela during this difficult period," the MEA had said.