LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5667
ANSWERED ON– 27/03/2026
EMERGENCY EVACUATION OF INDIANS
†5667. SHRI RAJKUMAR ROAT
Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:-
(a) the details of the operations carried out for the evacuation of Indian citizens during wars/emergencies abroad in the last ten years;
(b) the number of Indian students, labourers and other citizens brought back to India from such countries including the Russia-Ukraine and USA-Israel-Iran conflicts;
(c) the operation-wise details of the fees charged per passenger by the Government or relevant agencies;
(d) whether it has come to the notice of the Government that complaints have been received regarding high fees being charged in some cases during emergency evacuations or economically weaker citizens not receiving adequate priority and if so, the action taken by the Government in this regard; and
(e) whether the Government proposes to formulate any policy to ensure free or subsidized evacuation of Indian students and labourers stranded abroad in such emergencies in future and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
(SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH)
(a) to (c) Government accords utmost priority to the safety and well-being of the Indian nationals abroad. Government has executed various operations in last ten years to evacuate Indian nationals during wars/conflicts/emergencies. The context and basis of each operation/evacuations is unique. Details of evacuations/operations along with number of evacuated Indian nationals are attached at Annexure-I
. During the prevailing USA-Israel-Iran conflict, Government has facilitated return of over 3.75 lakh Indian passengers by commercial flights including non-scheduled flight operations from West Asia and Gulf region till 21 March 2026.
(d) & (e) The Government has received queries through various outreach platforms made available to Indian nationals during the prevalent situation. Queries received at the Special Control Room in Ministry of External Affairs range from assistance to make contact with family/friends/relatives to enquiries about available travel options, cross-border travel facilitation, situation update, to verify misinformation etc. The queries are being flagged to the concerned Indian Embassies and Consulates in the region for real-time action. Government has been facilitating Indian passengers to embark on available commercial flights by facilitating local transportation, cross-border movements, obtaining transit visas etc. Government addresses each emergency as per the on-ground situation and circumstances and a response is executed to ensure the safety and well being of Indians abroad.