New Delhi/Doha/Kabul: As many as 392 people, including 329 Indians rescued from Afghanistan, were brought to Delhi in three separate air crafts on Sunday amid deteriorating security scenario in the war-torn country.
The two flights – one carrying 135 passengers from Doha, Qatar, and the other from Tajikistan capital Dushanbe with 89 onboard – landed in New Delhi on Sunday early morning, while the third special repatriation flight carrying 168 passengers, including 107 Indians, landed in Hindon air base in Ghaziabad around 10 am.
It is learnt that a number of prominent Sikh leaders are on board the flight.
Apprehending that the Taliban militia may prevent the Afghan public representatives from taking the IAF flight, the entire plan was kept secret till the flight took off from Afghanistan, sources said.
The IAF aircraft was waiting for the clearance at the Kabul airport due to the huge rush as many countries have sent their military planes to evacuate their citizens.
"The US authorities have taken full control of the airport and they are managing the air operation from the war torn country. In this huge rush, charting out a slot for an aircraft and also a safe air route for the evacuation flight, have become major challenges for US authority," an official explained who was privy to these developments.
Government sources said that more Indians are likely to be brought back to India from Kabul on Sunday.
Earlier, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted that 87 Indians and two Nepalese citizens are coming to India on board the Air India flight.
They were taken to Tajikistan capital Dushanbe from Kabul on board a military transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force on Saturday. The group flown back to Delhi in a special Air India flight from the central Asian city.
"Bringing Indians home from Afghanistan! AI 1956 carrying 87 Indians departs from Tajikistan for New Delhi. Two Nepalese nationals also evacuated. Assisted and supported by our Embassy @IndEmbDushanbe. More evacuation flights to follow," Bagchi tweeted at around 1:20 am.
Separately, the Indian embassy in Qatar had said 135 Indians, who were evacuated from Kabul to Doha in the last few days, were being sent to India.
"1st batch of 135 Indians who were evacuated 4m Kabul to Doha over past days being repatriated tonight to India," the embassy said in a post-midnight tweet.
"We thank Qatar authorities n all concerned for making this possible," it added.
It is learnt that the Indians evacuated to Doha from Kabul were employees of a number of foreign companies that were operating in Afghanistan. The Indians were flown in to Doha by US and NATO aircraft.
India has already evacuated 200 people including the Indian envoy and other staffers of its embassy in Kabul in two C-17 heavy-lift transport aircraft of the IAF after the Taliban seized control of Kabul on Sunday.
The first evacuation flight brought back over 40 people, mostly staffers at the Indian embassy, on Monday.
The second C-17 aircraft evacuated around 150 people including Indian diplomats, officials, security personnel and some stranded Indians from Kabul on Tuesday.
The Taliban swept across Afghanistan this month, seizing control of almost all key towns and cities including Kabul in the backdrop of the withdrawal of the US forces.
The mission to evacuate close to 200 Indians was accomplished with support from the US.
Following the evacuation, the MEA said the focus now would be to ensure the safe return of all Indian nationals from the Afghan capital.
The MEA said the immediate priority for the government is to obtain accurate information about all Indian nationals currently staying in Afghanistan. It also requested the Indians as well as their employers to urgently share the relevant details with the special Afghanistan cell.
As per a rough estimate earlier, the number of Indians stranded in Afghanistan could be around 400 and India has been looking at ways to evacuate them including by coordinating with the US and other friendly countries.
The Kabul airport was closed on August 16 evening for commercial operation but it was reopened for military aircraft deployed for evacuation operations on Tuesday by the American agencies.
(With PTI and IANS inputs)
