Covid-19: Indians abroad must register with home missions, say guidelines for Vande Bharat flights

The Ministry of Home Affairs on Saturday issued the Standard Operating Protocol, or SOP, for international travel on non-scheduled commercial flights under the Vande Bharat Mission and air transport bubble arrangements, the Hindustan Times reported. India had banned international flight travel in March, in an effort to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The SOP said that people who want to travel to India on Vande Bharat Mission flights should register themselves with the Indian missions in the country where they are residing, along with other details required by the Ministry of External Affairs. However, people traveling to India on flights operating under air bubble arrangements need not register.

Since July, India has established air bubbles with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and the Maldives. The government is negotiating such arrangements with 13 more countries – Australia, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Bahrain, Israel, Kenya, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand. The Vande Bharat Mission began on May 6 and is currently in its fifth phase.

The SOP said those in distress, including workers who have been laid off, short-term visa holders whose visas are about to expire, persons with medical emergency, pregnant women, elderly individuals or those who wish to return...

Read more

from Scroll.in https://ift.tt/34krDg6
via IFTTT