India Steps Up Relief for Nepal Floods: Fourth Airlift, Bailey-bridge Teams, 108 Nationals Rescued

India has intensified its relief operations following the Bhote Koshi River flash floods on 26 August. New consignments, technical teams and bridge equipment are in Nepal or on the way. Indian officials report rescues and continuing efforts to locate missing people.

• A fourth Indian Air Force flight carried 11 tonnes of emergency assistance to Kathmandu, bringing India's total airlifted relief to 68.5 tonnes.
• Supplies already delivered include medicines, portable generator sets, food packets, water purification tablets and heavy technical equipment.
• India has sent 16 trucks carrying equipment for a 230-foot single-lane modular steel bridge to restore land connectivity where roads and bridges are damaged.
• Equipment for seven additional Bailey bridges will be dispatched, with technical teams to install them rapidly.

India deployed medical, tunnel-rescue and other technical units to support complex search-and-rescue tasks. External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar and the Ministry of External Affairs have highlighted combined logistical, medical and technical capabilities being used to support Nepal's response.

Status of Indian nationals and missing persons

• Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reported 108 Indian nationals rescued as of 22:30 on Saturday.
• Contact has been re-established with 40 Indian nationals.

• Efforts are ongoing to trace 275 Indian nationals and 128 Persons of Indian Origin who remain reported missing.

Nepal's government, led by Prime Minister Balen Shah, is operating at high alert and running at full capacity to manage rescue, relief and rehabilitation. Combined search-and-rescue teams, technical units and international assistance are working continuously to find missing people and restore essential infrastructure.

Flash floods tend to isolate communities by destroying road links and cutting off supply routes. The modular bridge equipment already delivered and the planned Bailey-bridge shipments are intended to restore access quickly so relief convoys, medical teams and repair crews can reach affected areas without waiting for permanent reconstruction.

India will continue to dispatch relief flights and technical teams. Bailey-bridge equipment and installation teams are expected to follow the modular bridge already sent. Indian officials say they will sustain logistical, medical and technical support through the relief and reconstruction phases.

• The speed at which modular and Bailey bridges are installed and restore overland access.
• Updates on the status of the 275 Indian nationals and 128 PIOs still missing.

India has escalated a multi-pronged response: airlifting material, delivering bridge equipment by truck, and deploying specialised technical and medical teams. Immediate priorities are rescue, restoring connectivity and tracing missing persons while maintaining diplomatic and operational contact with Indians in neighboring China.