The government of India has launched Operation Sadbhavana to help countries affected by Typhoon Yagi in Southeast Asia. The Indian government has announced USD one million in humanitarian assistance to Vietnam, USD one million in assistance to Myanmar and USD one lakh to the Lao People's Democratic Republic as part of its Act East Policy and its policy of being the first responder in providing Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) to impacted countries.

The name of the tropical cyclone ‘Typhoon Yagi’ was given by the Japanese Meteorological Agency.

Humanitarian Assistance to Vietnam & Lao People's Democratic Republic

The government of India, under Operation Sadbhavana, has announced one million dollars in humanitarian assistance to Vietnam. The 35 tons of humanitarian assistance includes a consignment of water purification items, water containers, blankets, kitchen utensils, and solar lanterns, among other things.

The government has also announced one lakh dollars in assistance to the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The ten tonnes of humanitarian relief supplies include hygiene kits, blankets, mosquito nets and repellents, sleeping bags, gensets, water purifiers, water purification tablets, disinfectants and other materials.

USD One Million Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar

The Indian government has provided USD one million worth of humanitarian assistance to Myanmar to help it recover from the devastation caused by Typhoon Yagi. The Indian government sent the first batch of relief material through INS Satpura ship, which carried 21 tonnes of relief material, including tents, generator sets, ready-to-eat meals, kitchen sets, solar lamps, medical supplies, mosquito nets and repellents, water purification tablets, and disinfectants. The relief material docked at the Yangon port of Myanmar.

The second tranche, comprising gensets, temporary shelter, hygiene kits, solar lamps, and other relief materials, was sent to Myanmar through an Indian Air Force IL-76 transport plane.

About Typhoon Yagi

Typhoon Yagi is considered to be the most powerful storm to originate in the South China Sea in the last 30 years.

Typhoons are tropical cyclones that originate in the South China Sea.

Typhoon Yagi, with a speed of more than 142 miles per hour, affected Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, Lao People's Democratic Republic and southern China.

Of all the countries, Typhoon Yagi has severely affected Vietnam and has caused massive death and destruction in the country due to widespread flooding and landslides.

Over 350 people have been reported dead, and the death toll is expected to rise further.

Many areas in northern Vietnam are submerged in water, and the region's agricultural lands, factories, and infrastructure have been destroyed.

Also read: Cyclone Remal brings heavy rains in parts of West Bengal and Bangladesh.

What is a cyclone?

The word cyclone is derived from the Greek word cyclos, and it was coined by Henry Piddington, who worked as a Rapporteur in Kolkata during British rule.

A cyclone is a wind system that circulates about a centre of low atmospheric pressure in a counterclockwise direction north of the Equator and in a clockwise direction to the south.

Based on their origin, cyclones are divided into tropical and temperate.

Tropical cyclones are confined within the geographical area of the Tropics of Capricorn and Tropic of Cancer, forming over warm ocean water near the equator.

Cyclones originating in temperate, high-altitude areas are called temperate cyclones.

Cyclonic winds are found all over the globe except in the equatorial region.