C-17 aircraft to evacuate more Indians from Wuhan, carry medical supplies

India will send a C-17 military aircraft to Wuhan on February 20 to evacuate more Indians from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city and also provide medical supplies to China, military sources said on Tuesday. The C-17 Globemaster, the biggest military aircraft in the Air Force, will carry a large consignment of medical supplies to China and bring back more Indians from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus epidemic, the sources told PTI.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the government till now has evacuated 640 Indians from China by sending to Air India planes. Last week, India had announced that it will send medicines as well as other medical supplies to China. Meanwhile, Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong has appreciated India for extending solidarity and expressing readiness to assist China to deal with the epidemic.

He also said there is no case of infection as of today among the remaining Indians in Hubei province, the epicentre of the epidemic, and authorities are taking "good care" of them. China's National Health Commission on Tuesday said the death toll due to the outbreak climbed to 1,868 on Monday while the total number of confirmed cases jumped to 72,436. PTI MPB ZMN