What Happened
- External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed the Rajya Sabha that India has successfully repatriated approximately 67,000 nationals from West Asia since the outbreak of hostilities between Israel, the United States, and Iran on 28 February 2026.
- The MEA established a dedicated control room and coordinated with Indian embassies and consulates across the Gulf to manage the crisis, facilitating border crossings from UAE to Oman and from Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain into Saudi Arabia.
- Commercial and non-scheduled flights were approved wherever airspace partially reopened — on March 7 alone, 51 inbound flights by Indian carriers landed in India, followed by 49 on March 8 and 50 on March 9.
- Indian students in Tehran were relocated away from the capital; Indian nationals in Iran for business were assisted in crossing into Armenia to return home.
- Two Indian mariners were killed and one remained missing following attacks on merchant shipping in the region.
- Jaishankar described Gulf tensions as "a matter of particular concern," as nearly one crore Indian citizens live and work across the Gulf, and their remittances account for a substantial share of India's inward flows.
Static Topic Bridges
India's Overseas Evacuation Operations — Historical Pattern
India has conducted over thirty complex evacuation operations over the past few decades, establishing a robust institutional capability for citizen protection abroad. These operations have evolved from ad-hoc responses into structured, doctrine-driven missions.
- Operation Kaveri (2023): Evacuated over 3,000 Indians from conflict-hit Sudan; coordinated via control rooms in Jeddah and Port Sudan, using INS Sumedha for sea evacuation.
- Operation Ganga (2022): Evacuated Indians from Ukraine; involved multiple land border crossings coordinated with neighbouring countries.
- Operation Ajay (2023): Evacuated Indians from Israel when the Israel-Gaza conflict began.
- Operation Sindhu (2026): The codename assigned to the current West Asia evacuation operation.
- Each operation follows the pattern: MEA focal coordination → embassy-level ground operations → armed forces logistics (air and/or sea) → community association networks for headcount.
Connection to this news: The current repatriation of 67,000 nationals is by far the largest single evacuation effort in India's history, dwarfing all previous operations in scale and reflecting the sheer size of the Gulf Indian diaspora.
Indian Diaspora in the Gulf — Economic and Strategic Stakes
Nearly one crore (approximately 9 million) Indian nationals reside and work in the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman. They represent the single largest concentration of Indian workers overseas.
- India is the world's largest recipient of remittances; in FY2025, total inward remittances stood at approximately $135 billion.
- Gulf-based Indians account for approximately 38–40% of total remittance inflows (around $51 billion annually), despite comprising only about 27% of the total overseas Indian population.
- The nature of Gulf migration is primarily labour migration — workers remit a higher proportion of earnings compared to diaspora in Western countries who tend to settle permanently.
- The Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF), administered by the MEA, provides emergency support — lodging, medical care, air passage, legal assistance — to distressed Indian migrants in Gulf countries.
- Any disruption to Gulf energy supply or economic activity has a direct pass-through to India's energy import bill and household incomes dependent on remittances.
Connection to this news: Jaishankar explicitly flagged that the crisis is "a matter of particular concern" because livelihoods of nearly one crore Indians are at stake, underscoring why India mobilised at unprecedented scale.
Ministry of External Affairs — Consular and Crisis Management Mechanisms
The MEA is the nodal ministry for protection of Indian nationals abroad. It operates through a network of Missions (embassies) and Posts (consulates/high commissions) in over 190 countries.
- The Consular, Passport and Visa (CPV) Division of MEA handles all matters relating to overseas Indians in distress.
- In crisis situations, MEA typically activates a Joint Operations Centre (JOC) within the ministry, coordinates with the Ministry of Defence for naval/air assets, and liaises with the Ministry of Civil Aviation for emergency flight clearances.
- The Emergency Certificate (EC) — issued by Indian missions abroad — serves as a travel document for Indians who have lost their passports, enabling them to return home.
- The Emigration Act, 1983 and its successor framework governs labour migration to ECR (Emigration Check Required) countries, which include most Gulf nations; workers going to these countries need Emigration Clearance from the Protector of Emigrants.
- India's "No Indian Left Behind" doctrine, articulated since the 2014 government, has elevated evacuation operations to a visible foreign policy instrument.
Connection to this news: The control room established during the West Asia crisis is a direct instantiation of MEA's consular crisis management architecture; the scale of operations — 50+ daily inbound flights — required real-time coordination across Civil Aviation, Defence, and External Affairs ministries.
India's West Asia Policy — Balancing Interests
India's approach to West Asian geopolitics is characterised by strategic autonomy: maintaining strong ties with Israel, the Arab Gulf states, Iran, and the United States simultaneously without joining any formal alliance bloc.
- India is one of Israel's largest defence partners while also being the largest buyer of Gulf energy.
- India has consistently called for "dialogue and diplomacy" in the region, avoiding taking sides in the Israel-Iran conflict.
- India imports approximately 85% of its crude oil needs; the Gulf region accounts for over 60% of these imports.
- Any closure of the Strait of Hormuz — through which about 20% of global oil passes — would directly threaten India's energy security.
- India's stated position emphasises: protection of international shipping lanes, adherence to international law, and peaceful resolution of disputes.
Connection to this news: Jaishankar's cautious phrasing — calling it "a matter of particular concern" rather than taking sides — reflects India's calibrated West Asia policy, while the evacuation itself demonstrates India's commitment to citizen protection regardless of the political complexities of the conflict.
Key Facts & Data
- 67,000 Indian nationals repatriated from West Asia as of March 9, 2026
- ~1 crore (9 million) Indian nationals live and work in the Gulf region
- ~$51 billion in annual remittances from Gulf-based Indians (approx. 38–40% of India's total)
- India has conducted 30+ overseas evacuation operations since independence
- Operation Kaveri (Sudan, 2023): ~3,000 Indians evacuated via air and sea
- Operation Ganga (Ukraine, 2022): ~22,500 Indians evacuated
- 2 Indian mariners killed in attacks on merchant shipping in the current crisis
- 50–51 inbound flights daily from Indian carriers during peak evacuation (March 7–9, 2026)
- India's crude oil import dependence: ~85% of domestic requirement; Gulf supplies >60%
- The Strait of Hormuz: handles approximately 20% of global oil trade