Date:02/01/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/02/stories/2005010202930900.htm

International

Indian national missing in Aceh

By P .S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE, JAN. 1. At least one Indian national, an engineering professional, who is believed to have gone to Indonesia on an assignment involving an Indian company, is "missing" even as the earthquake-tsunami toll continued to rise in the Aceh province.

H.K. Singh, India's Ambassador to Indonesia, did not want to rule out hope in the case though the devastation in Aceh was staggering. About half of the 40-50 Indian-descent Indonesians, all long-time residents of Aceh, were so far found to have survived the catastrophe, he said.

India invited to meet

India had been invited by Indonesia to a multilateral conference on the earthquake-tsunami disaster, Mr. Singh said. The meeting was slated for January 6 in Jakarta.

The meeting, proposed by Singapore, is aimed at bringing together all the 10 members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations and a host of other countries — the U.S., India, Japan, Australia (these four being the members of an international "core group" with the necessary "assets and capabilities"), China, South Korea, New Zealand and some affected countries.

Independent of this new exercise in aid diplomacy, two Indian naval vessels — one laden with relief supplies worth $ 1 million and a hospital ship — were now on their way to Aceh, Mr. Singh said.

On Friday night, India offered to Thailand a package of "assistance in kind" of the order of $500,000 to supplement the kingdom's ongoing relief efforts in the tsunami-hit areas, according to T.P. Seetharam, India's Charge d' Affaires in Bangkok.

Indicating that the supply of medicines and the deployment of medical professionals and forensic experts were possibilities, he said the details would be worked out in consultation with the Thai authorities.

This is in response to the Thai Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra's appeal for international help.

India's proactive role of helping the affected countries, including Sri Lanka and the Maldives, while being itself a tsunami-victim, has come in for attention in East Asian political circles.

Appeal to NRIs

Indians residing in South-East Asia, especially Malaysia and Singapore, have been offering help.

The Indian High Commissioner to Singapore, Alok Prasad, said that NRIs were being briefed about the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the related appeal.