Indian Naval Ship Kesari entered Port of Maputo, Mozambique yesterday on 25 December, As part of yet another deployment undertaken by the Indian Navy since May 2020 under Mission SAGAR. This is the eighth such deployment which currently is being conducted in close coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs and other agencies of the Government of India.
These deployments were conducted in solidarity with India’s extended Maritime Neighbourhood and were done to highlight the importance accorded by India to these special relationships. 500 Tons of food aid has been shipped by INS Kesari to support the efforts of the Government of Mozambique to help the nation with the ongoing drought and concurrent challenges of a pandemic.
This mission also depicts that India remains committed to supporting the capacity building efforts of the Armed Forces of Mozambique. INS Kesari is carrying two Fast Interceptor Craft and self-defence equipment is to be handed over to the Armed Forces of Mozambique.
INS Kesari, a Landing Ship Tank had also undertaken a similar mission in May – June 2020 to provide humanitarian and medical assistance to Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros, including deployment of Medical Assistance Teams of the Indian Navy in multiple locations.
Since May 2020, the Indian Navy has deployed such ships to 15 various Friendly Foreign Countries under SAGAR missions. These deployments spanned over 215 days at sea have delivered cumulative assistance of more than 3,000 MT of food aid, over 300 MT LMO, 900 Oxygen Concentrators and 20 ISO containers.
