Madagascar welcomes India's help in dealing with floods

The Prime Minister of Madagascar, Christian Ntsay, has thanked India for the relief assistance it has provided to the African country in the aftermath of the devastating floods and said the Indian Navy's presence is a "welcomed" one. India had on last week launched 'Operation Vanilla' and diverted INS Airavat with relief material to the country.

Speaking in the presence of the Indian envoy to Madagascar, Abhay Kumar, and Commander Sunil Sankar, the commanding officer of INS Airavat, PM Ntsay said, "India and Madagascar enjoy a close history and we are proud of this. There is solidarity, generosity, and brotherhood between both the countries." He also expressed Madagascar's "deep gratitude and deep thanks for the welcome aid".

Prime Minister Ntsay added that both these countries enjoy, "excellent relations", adding that he is proud to witness this.

The Navy ship, INS Airavat, brought with it much needed relief material comprising disaster relief stores, tents, blankets, clothing, food and medicines. The medical team that arrived on the ship has set up a medical camp at the northern port city of Antsiranana to provide help to the locals impacted by the flooding.