Over 8 lakh Indians repatriated under Vande Bharat Mission
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New Delhi, July 27: More than 8 lakh stranded Indians abroad have returned to India through various means under Vande Bharat Mission since May 6, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.
He also added that out of 814K people more than 270K returned on flights from 53 countries. The fourth phase of Vande Bharat Mission, India has operated 1,197 flights which include 945 international flights and 252 feeder flights. These flights were operated by the Air India group, IndiGo, SpiceJet, and GoAir and they covered 29 countries.
Details about ticket bookings will be shared by @airindiain @FlyWithIX & other airlines shortly. It is our earnest effort to reach out to every stranded & distressed Indian & facilitate their evacuation & outbound travel. I request you to kindly exercise patience & bear with us.
— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) July 26, 2020
In a series of tweets, he also added that they are preparing to dovetail Phase-4 of VBM into Phase-5 from 1st August 2020 & bring back more Indian citizens adding that they will soon share the details about ticket bookings of Phase 5 will be shared by Air India, Air India Express and other airlines shortly.
Under the fifth phase, Air India will connect Indian cities with US, Canada, Qatar, Oman, UAE, Singapore, UK, Frankfurt, Paris, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, New Zealand, and the Philippines among others. More destinations & flights will be added as this phase progresses, the minister said.
Among other destinations, Ph-5 will connect India with USA, Canada, Qatar, Oman, UAE, Singapore, UK, Frankfurt, Paris, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, New Zealand , Philippines & more.
— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) July 26, 2020
Like we did earlier, more destinations & flights will be added as this phase progresses.
The special international charter flights have been operating under the Vande Bharat Mission since May 6 to help stranded people reach their destinations amid the coronavirus pandemic. The mission is in its fourth phase now.
Meanwhile, international flights were suspended since the national lockdown started on March 25 due to a coronavirus pandemic. However earlier, the Aviation Minister had said that international flights may resume under bilateral air bubbles or a travel bubble with specific countries as many others is imposing entry restrictions even now, including India in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.