India says ready to provide assistance, support to quake-affected Afghanistan

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted that the first consignment of India's earthquake relief assistance for the people of Afghanistan has reached Kabul.

India has said it is ready to provide assistance and support to the people of Afghanistan in their hour of need after a devastating earthquake killed nearly 1,000 people, destroyed houses and displaced several in the country.

The 5.9 magnitude quake struck the Central Region of Afghanistan early Wednesday (June 22) morning and four districts in Patika province — Gayan, Barmala, Naka and Ziruk - as well as Spera district in Khost province, have been affected.

"At the outset, I express our deepest condolences to the victims and their families, and to all those impacted by the devastating earthquake in Afghanistan," India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T. S. Tirumurti said at a Security Council briefing and consultations on Afghanistan on June 23.

"India shares the grief of the people of Afghanistan and is ready to provide assistance and support in this hour of need,” he said.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted that the first consignment of India's earthquake relief assistance for the people of Afghanistan has reached Kabul and has been handed over by the Indian team there. "Further consignment also follows," he added.

The earthquake registered at a depth of 10KM, UN humanitarian agency United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

At least 1,000 people have been killed in the quake with several others displaced and nearly 2,000 homes destroyed. OCHA is coordinating the emergency response on behalf of UN agencies and humanitarian partners.