Our parents were submerged in water. We, too, have gone under water. Will our children also suffer the same fate?”

Cyclone Ditwah, originating near Sri Lanka, caused catastrophic flooding and landslides across the Indian Ocean basin. Sri Lanka suffered the most, with over 465 deaths and widespread destruction.

Cyclone Ditwah has triggered a severe humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka, with floods and landslides impacting over 1.4 million people

Kandy is the worst-affected district, where 88 deaths and 150 missing cases have been recorded. Other badly hit areas include Badulla with 71 deaths, Nuwara Eliya with 68 deaths and Matale with 23 deaths and many more injuries and losses.

Rescuers from India’s disaster response agency carried a baby away from a flood-hit home in the town of Puttalam, in western Sri Lanka on Monday, December 1.Footage here released by the High Commission of India in Sri Lanka shows rescue teams assisting a family that had its home flooded after Cyclone Ditwah devastated the country.

Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides, and infrastructure collapse triggered by Cyclone Ditwah, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.

Local members of the Sri Lankan community came together to mourn those who have died as Cyclone Ditwah hit the country.

Former ambassador Asif Durrani criticised India’s decision, calling it petty and recalling similar refusals in past crises, including when Pakistan sought to send aid to Nepal. He noted that Pakistan had previously allowed India to send wheat to Afghanistan via land when alternatives through Iran proved costly.