DGCA extends suspension on international flights till Jan 31

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has extended the suspension of international flights till January 31, 2021. The suspension comes in the wake of new mutant COVID-19 strain, which was first discovered in the United Kingdom.

As such, the Union Health Ministry recommended the civil aviation ministry to extend the suspension of India-UK flights till January 7, 2021. According to the PTI, the recommendation was based on inputs from the joint monitoring group, which was headed by the director general of health services (DGHS) and the National Task Force headed by DG Indian Council of Medical Research. The health ministry in a statement said all the international passengers who have arrived in India during the last 14 days, from December 9 – 22, if symptomatic and tested positive, will be subjected to genome sequencing.

Hardeep Singh Puri, the civil aviation minister, said flights will resume in a strictly regulated manner after January 7, 2021. “Decision has been taken to extend the temporary suspension of flights to and from the UK till January 7. Thereafter strictly regulated suspension will take place for which details will be announced shortly,” he said.

It should be noted that “scheduled” international flights have ben suspended in India since the lockdown in March 23 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Air India’s Vande Bharat Mission have been operating since May and under bilateral air bubble arrangements with selected countries since July. India, as per reports, has formed air bubble pacts with 24 countries including the US, the UK, Kenya, UAE, Bhutan and France. Under the air bubble pact between two countries, special international flights can be operated by their respective airlines between their territories.

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Meanwhile, the government has launched efforts to track down thousands of people who have entered India from the UK in the past few weeks.