INS Jalashwa to evacuate 700 Indians from Sri Lanka on Monday

Colombo: Indian Navy ship INS Jalashwa will sail from Colombo Port on Monday (June 1, 2020) to bring back 700 stranded Indians under the second phase of operation samudra setu. 

The vessel reached Colombo Port today were the Indian High Commissioner were seen interacting with Indian nationals. Indian embassy in Sri Lanka shared the picture of the vessel writing, ''Indian High Commissioner interacts with Indian nationals at Colombo Port and bids them safe voyage on-board #INSJalashwa to Tuticorin ! #VandeBharatMission #Samudrasetu.''

Indian High Commissioner interacts with Indian nationals at Colombo Port and bids them safe voyage on-board #INSJalashwa to Tuticorin ! #VandeBharatMission #Samudrasetu @MEAIndia @IndianDiplomacy @indiannavy @COVIDNewsByMIB @MoHFW_INDIA pic.twitter.com/oYHsb8qSQl — India in Sri Lanka (@IndiainSL) June 1, 2020

INS Jalashwa will depart for Tamil Nadu and will bring people back home from various countries like the UK, the UAE, the US, Maldives, Bahrain, and Singapore.

#VandeBharathMission in #SriLanka. Embarkation on #INSJalashwa in progress ! Few glimpses from the day so far #SamudraSetu @IndianDiplomacy @MEAIndia @indiannavy @COVIDNewsByMIB @MoHFW_INDIA pic.twitter.com/O5Qt9pVg8w — India in Sri Lanka (@IndiainSL) June 1, 2020

Commander Gaurav Durgapal, Executive Officer on INS Jalashwa told ANI: "The guidelines for safety against COVID-19 and the protocols for the same are being promulgated by the naval headquarters and the commands respectively."

"The entire ship for the purpose of evacuation has been divided into three zones. The red zone is the area where we plan to accommodate all the evacuees. The orange zone is a place with a team dedicated to taking care of the people being evacuated and the Green zone is where officers and sailors are staying," he said.

It is to be noted that INS Jalashwa is the country's second-largest warship of 16,900-tonnes after aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya. The ship can carry around 800 to 1000 people.