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Questions raised on cost of Sudan rescue

July 16, 2016 01:50 am | Updated 01:50 am IST - NEW DELHI:

With many Indians opting to remain, eye brows have been raised over the cost of Operation Sankat Mochan

Stranded Indians arrive from Sudan at the IGI Technical Airport in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: R.V. Moorthy

While the government declared the South Sudan evacuation Operation Sankat Mochan a “success”, questions are being raised after hundreds of Indians chose to stay back in Juba, meaning that one of two airforce C-17 Globemaster planes sent returned empty with only 154 of the 550 initially expected passengers. The result has led some officials to say that a full “cost-benefit analysis” must be made before any future evacuation operations are planned.

Role of Ministers

Some have also been critical of the External Affairs Minister’s role and that of the Minister of State in the operation, which they said was best left to MEA and MoD officials. “The government must anticipate these crises, instead of constantly being reactive,” said former Ambassador K.C. Singh, referring to previous efforts to evacuate Indians from Yemen and Libya. “If these decisions have to be micromanaged by the ministers, it means the system isn’t working,” he said.

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According to sources aware of the planning of Operation Sankat Mochan, discussions for an evacuation began on July 11 after Ms Swaraj received inputs from the embassy in Juba, and a barrage of messages over twitter, that called for a rescue operation as fighting between the rival factions in South Sudan worsened. On July 12 morning, a multi-ministry meeting, held by Ms. Swaraj to discuss logistics, was informed that approximately 450 people including Dutch nationals, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis had requested evacuation out of Juba. At the time, Juba airport was closed, and no commercial options were available. After some discussion, the officials agreed to send two massive C-17s rather than the smaller C-130s.

Changing situation

But later that day the situation in Juba improved after President Salva Kiir and his rival, Vice-President Riek Machar announced a ceasefire.According to sources on the ground, Indians who owned shops and small business were less inclined to leave, while salaried employees and families, which numbered about 300 were still insisting on an evacuation.

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However, by the time General V.K. Singh actually landed in Juba, only 154 persons wanted to return, a load that could have filled one aircraft. “We were disappointed that at least 300 people who had signed up for the evacuation effort decided not to return at the last minute,” MEA Secretary (Economic Relations) Amar Sinha, who also flew to Juba, told The Hindu. He added, “We can only hope their political judgement of the situation proves to be the right one.” When asked whether the government had considered calling off the operation in view of the reduced numbers, Mr. Sinha denied the suggestion, saying only that “in hindsight a situation can seem safe, but at the time one has to move to minimise risk.”

High operational costs

But other officials are calling into question the cost of the operations, given that commercial operations by Kenyan Airways and Ethiopian Airways, that also fly to Delhi resumed operations on July 14. At present, the cost of a one-way ticket from Juba to Delhi, is between $600-$1,000, the airlines’ offices confirmed.

The cost of the C-17’s on the other hand would have been close to 10 times the figure, at $1 million, given the cost of flying the aircraft is about $24,000 (US DoD figures, 2012) per flying hour. “Obviously, there is no price on the safety of Indian citizens, but if there are viable options, they must be considered,” sources said.

Sources in Juba said that many of those who changed their mind flew to other neighbouring countries, hoping to “sit out” the situation until it was safe to return, leading to the situation where one full Airforce flight came back empty, after both plane loads were accommodated onto one flight at the stopover in Entebbe.

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