The Indian central government has completed the first stage of relief and rescue operations and its focus of relief efforts has gradually shifted to the restoration of infrastructure and rehabilitation in the tsunami-ravaged southern states and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The massive quake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale and the resultant tidal waves in the Indian Ocean on Dec. 26 has claimed 9,682 Indians' lives, and 6,011 people are still missing, according to a status report issued on Wednesday evening by the Indian Home Ministry.  

Soon after the tsunami hit the country, a nationwide campaign to battle the disaster started throughout India. Not only the central and state governments and the armed forces but also ordinary people have been mobilized to join in the relief work.

People on all walks of life are encouraged to extend a helping hand to the victims in this hour of need. Various funds for donation have been established by governmental as well as non-governmental organizations (NGO) and tens of millions of rupees keep pouring in.

Even slum kids working as domestic helps and cheap labor on tea and snacks stalls have joined the cause to show their sympathy and solidarity.

A story carried by The Pioneer Thursday said a group of 150 slum and street kids in eastern Bhubanes war brought together by a city-based NGO, which helped them form a children's club, have resolved to pool a part of their earnings for donating to the cause of the tsunami-hit.

The affected areas such as Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Pondicherry and Kerala have well-functioning state governments that could mobilize their resources, while the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a Union Territory, presented a daunting challenge to the central government.

At least 900 people have been confirmed dead and 6,010 people missing to date in the worst-hit archipelago which spread over 700kilometers in the Bay of Bengal.

However, the Manmohan Singh government has mounted what is being described as the biggest relief operations since independence in 1947.

The Ministry of Railways and the Ministry of Shipping have been requested to transport relief materials free of charge to notified tsunami affected districts and islands. In addition, many private transport operators are also providing free of cost services for relief consignments.

The central Crisis Management Group has been spearheading the relief efforts in the islands besides monitoring efforts in the southern affected states soon after receiving reports of the tsunami hitting Port Blair in the South Andaman Islands close to Indonesia's Banda Aceh.

The Indian armed forces have been called upon to assist civilian authorities on an unprecedented scale. An operation codenamed Operation Andamans has seen the deployment of 8,000 armytroops, 5,500 naval personnel and 2,000 air force personnel in the islands. Dozens of ships and helicopters as well as cargo planes have also been mobilized for the purpose.

In the past ten days, about 110 relief camps have been set up for over 41,200 people, over 1,200 tons of food items, 368 tons of drinking water, 83 tons of medicines and disinfectant and 9,975 tents have been delivered to the affected people. No law and order problem in regard to distribution of relief materials in any of the islands has been reported.

According to a status report released Thursday by the Home Ministry, power and water supply have been restored partly in the islands and some harbors are now functioning. All the affected islands have been provided with satellite telephones and point-to-point communication established including police wireless system.     

The Ministry of Health with thousands of medical teams in the field is monitoring the situation round the clock and there is no report of epidemic.

Along the coastal states in southern India, all seaports, harbors, airports and national highways are now fully functional. The telecommunication facilities, which were temporarily disrupted,have since been restored.

The central government is continuing the relief and rescue operations. The situation in the tsunami-devastated states has improved considerably and people have begun to return to their homes from the relief camps, said the report.

Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran Wednesday said at a press briefing that the first phase of relief operations was completed and the second phase to restore normalcy in tsunami-ravaged areas is under way.

Saran also clarified India's position on international assistance one day before the world leaders and aid workers gathered in Jakarta for coordinating distribution of billions of dollars in aid to countries hit by the worst natural disaster in the past decades.

"At any point of time, if we feel we can benefit from such assistance certainly then there will be no hesitation in benefiting from the assistance," Saran stressed, indicating that New Delhi does not refuse international aid.

(Xinhua News Agency January 6, 2005)