As per a new government circular issued on July 3, commercial international flights to and from India will continue to remain suspended till July 31. Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stated in an official statement that international scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on a case to case basis. Air India and other domestic airlines continue to operate flights under Vande Bharat mission.
International Flights To Remain Suspended Till July 31
India had suspended all domestic and international flights in the last week of March amidst the pandemic. While domestic flights resumed operations from May 25 , international flights are still suspended, marking four months of no overseas flight by end of July. DGCA released an official statement on twitter.
— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) July 3, 2020
The official release further goes on to say that certain international scheduled flights on ‘selected routes’ may be allowed. However, the decision for this would be made by competent authorities on a case-to-case basis. Similarly, the restriction also does not apply to international cargo operations.
Also Read: International Flights In India To Begin Operations On Two Conditions
When Will Commercial International Flights Resume?
Scheduled international passengers flights were suspended on March 22. The most important question arises: when will they finally resume? As per Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, the decision on resuming international passenger flights will be taken in July if the coronavirus behaves in a ‘predictable manner’.
Singh also added that the resumption of international flights depends on other countries being open to receiving flights. Giving examples of the US, the UK, France, China, UAE and Singapore, he said many countries had put conditions on entry of people in their jurisdictions. This left India with little-to-no option but to keep the flights suspended.
A record 5 lakh+ stranded Indians have returned safely to India till date, under the #VandeBharatMission, a massive operation which is being carried out with the active support & cooperation of Indian Missions abroad, @MoCA_GoI, MHA, @MoHFW_INDIA and State Governments. pic.twitter.com/cOUhFYXxAX
— Anurag Srivastava (@MEAIndia) July 3, 2020
Currently, the government is currently running the fourth phase of Vande Bharat Mission (VBM). It is considered to be one of the largest citizen repatriation programmes in the world. As per reports, till now about 5 lakh Indians have returned home, as of July 4. Kerala received a maximum of 94,085 stranded Indians. We spoke to some of these Indians Stranded Abroad And They Shared Their Experience Of The Vande Bharat Mission.
The government is also looking at establishing ‘travel bubbles’ between India and other countries that have a strong demand for travel. Talks for these are currently underway.
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