Operation Surya Hope 2013 | Operation Rahat | Indian Army | Indian Air Force | Indian Defence Forces | Hope
The Indian Army’s Central Command response to the June 2013 North India floods in Uttarakhand.
Operation Surya Hope was the Indian Army’s Central Command response to the June 2013 North India floods in Uttarakhand. The Uttarakhand flood was caused by record off-season monsoon rains, cloud burst, floods, flash floods, and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), which were possibly induced by climate change. The humanitarian disaster affected millions, stranded over 100,000 pilgrims and tourists in Himalayan religious sites, and killed several thousand people. The Indian Army's Lucknow based Central Command conducted the operation. Surya or Sun, is the emblem of the Central Command and features prominently on the Command's formation sign and flag, which is probably why Central Command chose to name the effort Operation Surya Hope.
Operation Surya Hope was the follow-up to Operation Ganga Prahar. The operation was commanded by Lieutenant General Anil Chait, the General Officer Commanding in Chief (GOC in C) of Central Command. He was succeeded by Lieutenant General Rajan Bakhshi on 1 July 2013. Soon after assuming command, Bakhshi said that the Army would continue with the relief operations, and that he would soon visit Uttarakhand. Over 10,000 troops participated in Operation Surya Hope. It was conducted in arrangement with efforts from the Indian Air Force (IAF) (Operation Rahat), Border Road Organization, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and other para military forces under the Ministry of Home.
The floods and landslides in Uttarakhand was considered by many as the worst natural disaster in the area in a hundred years. The Government of India classifies the disaster as a tsunami India Meteorological Department (IMD) states that the total rainfall in Uttarakhand from 1 to 18 June 2013 totaled to 385.1 mm, the highest in the last 80 years. The normal rainfall during the period is 71.3 mm, making the total 440% larger than the normal.
On 19 June, the day Operation Ganga Prahar became Operation Surya Hope, and the strength of the Army in the affected area was 5,600. By 27 June 2013, the Army's numbers in the mission area had increased to above 8,500. Army's disaster response units included infantry battalions, Army Service Corps units to provide Logistic and Supply support, signals regiment, engineer regiments, advance dressing stations and other medical units, special forces, specialised mountain troops, paratroopers, and army aviation corps assets. The Army Aviation Corps (AAC) deployed 13 helicopters (nine on 19 June and an additional four the next day). This is the largest humanitarian mission by the Indian Army in several decades.
By 23 June, the total number of aircraft involved in the evacuation, relief, rescue, and search tasks, according to government sources, was 83 (IAF-45, Army-13, state government hired civil helicopters- 25). The helicopters carried out their mission in hazardous mountain conditions, often in rain and fog, in what one pilot called a "war like situation". On 24 June, Air Chief Marshal Norman Anil Kumar Browne, the Chief of the Indian Air-force, to assure the people cut off in the mountains, by the bad weather, road blocks, and the floods, said "Our helicopter rotors will not stop churning till such time we get each one of you out. Do not lose hope, and hang in there." The next day, 25 June, to high light the hazardous conditions of flying, an IAF Mi 17, Russian built helicopter, flying in poor visibility, in a narrow valley, crashed into the mountain side killing all 20 on board (5 IAF, 6 ITBP, and 9 NDRF personnel). The Indian Navy, too, had a small presence in the mission area. The Navy's marine commandos (Marcos), were deployed to Rudraprayag, and Rishikesh, for rescue and search missions. It is not known what task, if any, was performed by this group.
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) deployed 13 teams (a total of 422 persons) from two NDRF battalions in six locations, as follows: five teams (174 personnel) in Rudraprayag District, three teams (89 personnel) in the Haridwar area, one team (33 personnel) in Guptkashi, one team (29 personnel) in Lakshar, one team (40 personnel) in Gaurikund, one team (45 personnel) in Dehradun, and one team (12 personnel) at Jolly Grant Airport. The NDRF mission was to assist the "State Government for search and rescue operations". The strength of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) in the affected area as on 20 June 13 was 600 personnel: 300 from the Ist ITBP Battalion in the Joshimath area, and 300 from the 8th ITBP Battalion in Kedarnath, Gaurikund, and Gaucher.
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