India Army field hospital goes 24x7 in quake-hit Venezuela under Operation Amistad

An Indian Army field hospital under Operation Amistad is now treating earthquake survivors in Caracas round the clock. The deployment adds urgent medical capacity to Venezuela's overstretched relief effort after the deadly quakes.

In Short

• Camp at La Rinconada Racetrack offers free treatment throughout the day
• Experienced Indian Army doctors are treating survivors injured in last week's quakes
• Venezuelan authorities visited the hospital, underscoring coordination with Indian relief teams

An Indian Army field hospital sent to earthquake-hit Venezuela under Operation Amistad has become fully operational and is providing free medical services round the clock, officials said on Monday. The facility has been set up in Caracas as part of India’s humanitarian assistance after the powerful earthquakes that struck the country last week.

The Indian Embassy in Venezuela said a medical team of highly experienced Indian doctors has established the camp at the International La Rinconada Racetrack in Caracas. In a social media post on Monday, the embassy said the medical camp is "now fully operational. Services are open 24 hours. All services are free".

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 across the region. The death toll from the two quakes rose to 1,450 on Sunday, with thousands more injured and many more missing.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a social media post that Operation Amistad is "underway" in Venezuela. The Army field hospital is extending "a caring hand to those impacted by the earthquake", he said.

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

On Sunday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the relief supplies, medical equipment and 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 provide humanitarian assistance to Venezuela after the earthquakes, two IAF C-17 Globemaster aircraft transported 66 tonnes of aid, including the Indian Army field hospital, more than 35 tonnes of relief supplies, medicines and medical equipment, and two BHISHM Cubes, the Indian Air Force said on Sunday.

Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita & Maitri, or BHISHM, cubes are mobile hospitals meant to provide emergency medical care. The two aircraft completed a 23-hour flight covering an aerial distance of more than 14,000 km from Delhi to Caracas.

India’s assistance to Venezuela now includes a fully operational field hospital, relief supplies and emergency medical equipment, with the MEA saying earlier that "India stands shoulder to shoulder with the government and the people of Venezuela during this difficult period".

With PTI Inputs

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