Possible UPSC Questions
Prelims (Objective)
- Operation “Sindhu”, announced in June 2025, is associated with:
A) counter-terror strikes in Pakistan
B) evacuation of Indians from Iran
C) coastal oil-spill clean-up in the Arabian Sea
D) a trilateral naval exercise in the Persian Gulf - Which of the following countries shares a land border with Iran and presently maintains broadly amicable relations with India?
A) Turkey B) Azerbaijan C) Armenia D) Pakistan
Mains (150 words)
“Discuss the strategic and diplomatic challenges India faces when conducting civilian evacuations from West Asian hotspots, with reference to the freshly launched Operation Sindhu.”
Quick Outline of Key Facts
- Trigger: Escalating prospect of Israel-U.S. strikes on Iran after Operation Sindoor fallout; reports of Indian students injured in missile attack.
- Announcement: MEA launches Operation Sindhu (19 June 2025) to bring home ~4,000 Indians in Iran.
- First batch: 100 students air-lifted from Tehran to Yerevan, Armenia; Delhi flight arrives early 20 June.
- Partners thanked: Governments of Iran and Armenia for “smooth facilitation.”
- Evacuation corridors under consideration:
- Land/air via friendly neighbours: Armenia, Turkmenistan, Iraq
- Sea route: Persian Gulf embarkation → Indian Navy/chartered vessels, possible stopovers in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait
- Complications with Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan; no formal ties with Afghanistan.
- Parallel context: Diplomatic sensitivity post-Operation Sindoor (India’s early-May counter-terror strikes on Pakistan); careful balancing in West Asia.
Summary
With tensions in West Asia edging toward a wider conflagration, New Delhi on 19 June announced Operation Sindhu, a multi-pronged effort to evacuate thousands of Indian citizens, mainly students and medical tourists, stranded in Iran. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the decision followed “deteriorating conditions arising from the Iran-Israel confrontation.” Indian diplomats in Tehran confirmed that several students had been injured in a missile strike, prompting urgent coordination with Iranian authorities.
The first sortie—an IndiGo charter arranged by the Indian Embassy—bussed 100 students from Esfahan to Yerevan, Armenia, where they boarded an Air India flight to Delhi in the early hours of 20 June. Expressing gratitude to both Iran and Armenia for expediting permits and clearances, the MEA hinted at a rolling air-bridge: more civilian flights will shuttle evacuees via Armenia, Turkmenistan or Iraq, all of which maintain cordial ties with India.
Route-planning has turned into a diplomatic jigsaw. Other bordering states—Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan—offer faster overland exits but relations range from cool to adversarial, complicating over-flight and transit approvals. Afghanistan is off the board owing to the absence of formal diplomatic engagement. Simultaneously, the Navy’s Western Fleet has positioned two amphibious ships in the Gulf of Oman should a maritime lift become necessary, leveraging liaison offices in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait for staging.
Operation Sindhu unfolds barely six weeks after India’s bold Operation Sindoor—precision strikes on terror camps in Pakistan—which had already heightened regional sensitivities. Indian officials are therefore calibrating each step to avoid entanglement in the Iran-Israel theatre while upholding their citizens’ safety.
India’s track record of non-combatant evacuations—Airlift Kuwait (1990), Operation Raahat (Yemen 2015) and Operation Ganga (Ukraine 2022)—provides logistical muscle and institutional memory. Yet Sindhu adds a new layer of complexity: the hostilities involve two potential partners of India’s larger strategic calculus (Israel and the U.S.) and an oil-rich nation (Iran) critical to energy security and Chabahar port ambitions. Monitoring is continuous through the Integrated Defence Staff’s control room and MEA’s 24×7 helpline.
Significance to the UPSC Exam
- GS II – International Relations: Highlights evacuation diplomacy, balancing ties amid West Asian crises, and India’s use of “whole-of-government” approach.
- GS III – Security & Disaster Management: Illustrates logistical planning, naval readiness and air-bridge creation for citizen protection abroad.
- Essay & Interview: Offers current exemplar of how India projects soft power, safeguards diaspora, and navigates complex regional geopolitics without alliance entanglements.
