India had dispatched INS Kesari, carried medical assistance, food items to the nations in the Southern Indian Ocean as part of a ‘Mission Sagar’ initiative to deal with the Coronavirus pandemic. The five island nations, i.e., Maldives, Madagascar, Mauritius, Comoros and Seychelles had requested India for medical & food assistance to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Mission includes two major ministries of India, i.e., Ministry of Defence &Ministry of External Affairs-- along with various other Government agencies.