Control rooms have been set up to monitor the situation in Haiti
India is ready to evacuate its nationals from Haiti if required, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday, even as it established a control room to monitor the situation in the Caribbean country which has been hit by violence since the beginning of this month.
 
"As you know, there is a crisis in Haiti. And if required, we will evacuate. We are ready to evacuate," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated in response to questions at the weekly media briefing.
 
"We have established a control room here in the Ministry of External Affairs. We have emergency helpline numbers," Jaiswal said, adding that there were about 50-80 Indian nationals in Haiti. The Indian Embassy was in touch with all of them and was monitoring the situation, he stated.
 
The MEA provided the contact details of the Control Room that has been set up to monitor the situation and provide information and assistance.
 
The contact details of the Control Room are: 1800118797 (Toll-free), +91-11-23012113, +91-11-23014104, +91-11-23017905, +91-9968291988 (WhatsApp), situationroom@mea.gov.in.
 
The Embassy of India in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, which is concurrently accredited to the Republic of Haiti, has also set up a 24-hour emergency helpline, the MEA said.
 
According to a CNN report, Haiti has been under a state of emergency since some groups attacked the country's largest prison in Port-au-Prince earlier this month, killing and injuring police and prison staff and allowing some 3,500 inmates to escape.
 
Since then, gangs have been attacking government institutions and law and order has virtually collapsed in Haiti. The chaos has forced tens of thousands to flee their homes.