India despatches humanitarian aid to Kyrgyzstan

New Delhi, Jul 6 (PTI) India's first consignment of
humanitarian aid for violence-hit Kyrgyzstan left by an Indian
Air Force's IL-76 aircraft on Tuesday.
The heavy lift aircraft, with nearly 50 tons of aid
material such as medicines, food items and tents, took off
from Delhi for Osh in Kyrgyzstan, an IAF spokesperson said
here.
India had decided to send two plane loads of humanitarian
aid in response to an appeal by the Kyrgyz government in their
hour of need.
The second IL-76 aircraft with another 50 tons of aid
material would fly out of Delhi within a week.
Originally, the first aircraft was scheduled for take off
on July 2, but had to be postponed as clearances in this
regard had not come in.
The supplies would be delivered to the Ministry of
Emergency Situations of Kyrgyzstan at Osh through the Indian
Embassy.
India had been closely following recent internal
developments in Kyrgyzstan, a friendly country in the extended
neighbourhood.
It has earlier expressed happiness over the calm that has
returned to southern Kyrgyzstan after the unfortunate
incidents of violence in mid-June. The events, however, left
thousands in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.
In the middle of the internal strife, India had to
evacuate over 100 Indian students, who were trapped in ethnic
violence-hit southern Kyrgyz cities of Osh and Jalal-abad. PTI