New Delhi , India ( CNN ) As the earth shook in Nepal , tremors were felt over the border in India as well . It was a call to action : Within hours of the first 7.8 magnitude quake , India began planning a massive cross-border aid mission . With each hour , the scale of the devastation in Nepal became clearer -- some 3,862 people are known to have died so far -- and plans in India , where 72 people were also killed , got bigger . On Sunday alone , India delivered 187 tons of supplies , including 50 tons of water , 22 tons of food and 2 tons of medicine . And there will be more to come . Hundreds of trained disaster relief troops landed in Kathmandu and quickly got to work . With each flight in , there was a flight back out , packed with Indians and other nationals escaping to safety : 2,000 and counting have fled so far . By Monday , India was in full-scale crisis mode : From airports across India , planes flew in loaded with aid , and trucks made the trip by land from India 's east , aiming for more remote areas . On the ground : Devastation in Nepal . India 's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a special effort over Nepal . He has visited the country twice in his first year in office . And on Sunday , in his national radio address to the nation , he said Indians needed to `` wipe the tears of every Nepali , hold their hands , and stand with them . '' It all highlights the more proactive role taken by India in recent months . Just weeks ago , India flexed its military muscle to rescue Indians and other nationals from conflict-torn Yemen . Now , it is taking the lead in Nepal . Some might say India 's friendship is a signal for the other big country that shares a border with Nepal : China . A display of hard power , perhaps to achieve enduring soft power in the region . But in times like this , help is always welcome . First there 's the immediate search and rescue operation , and then the long process of rebuilding work . Nepal will need India 's friendship -- as well as China 's -- for many long months ahead .
Nepal has launched a massive aid mission to its earthquake-hit neighbor India . Disaster relief troops and tons of food , water and medicine have been flown in .