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India suspends air force planes sorties, to set up relief fund for Nepal

Xinhua, May 3, 2015 Adjust font size:

India has suspended the sorties of its air force planes to Nepal as the government is now using road to send relief goods to the quake-hit country, local media reported on Sunday.

The Indian Express quoted an Indian Air Force source as saying on Saturday that fixed wing operations had been "temporarily suspended" until further orders from the government.

But helicopter or rotary wing operations are still going on in search and rescue operation in Nepal, with six choppers stationed n Kathmandu and two in Pokhara, said the report.

Two roads have already opened and relief materials are being transported to Nepal by road, it said.

Meanwhile, the Indian government is working on a mechanism to extend the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to Nepal, said The Hindu daily.

The PMNRF was established in 1948 with public contributions to assist displaced persons from Pakistan. It was later extended to people from a weak socioeconomic background and others.

A group of Indian cabinet senior officials met on Saturday to review the relief operations in Nepal and to decide on the PMNRF extension.

The Indian air force staged over 300 sorties of fixed wing planes over the past one week to help send relief goods and bring back Indians from Nepal. Endi