India is all set to commence its first flight to Wuhan on October 30 after the coronavirus curbs and restrictions were lifted. The COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan but the city has now been declared officially safe and all the curbs have been lifted.
According to the Indian Embassy in Beijing, A Vande Mataram Mission (VBN) flight will be operated on the Delhi-Wuhan sector on October 30.
This will be the sixth VBM flight to China to help Indians stranded to travel back to their destinations.
14-day quarantine for people arriving from New Delhi
Air India had to announce the Delhi-Wuhan flight after the October 23 flight between Delhi-Guangzhou was cancelled.
People arriving from New Delhi will have to undergo 14-day quarantine in the designated hotels.
Earlier, India had operated three flights to Wuhan to airlift Indians stranded in the city while the deadly virus was at its peak in February.
The travellers have been asked to reach out to helpdesk (helpdesk.beijing@mea.gov.in) for any assistance or guidance, reported PTI.
Earlier today, the MEA said that over 2 million stranded Indians were repatriated through different modes under the Vande Bharat mission.
Internal preparations started for the next phase of VBM mission
Speaking at the weekly press briefing, Anurag Srivastava said: “The mission has crossed the two million mark. As of October 29, 20.55 lakh Indians have been repatriated through different modes under this mission, and in phase seven, which has been operational since October 1, 1,057 international flights have been operated.”
The MEA spokesperson further said that internal preparations have been started for the next phase of the mission.
The seventh phase of the mission was initiated on October 1, 2020.
The Narendra Modi government launched Vande Bharat Mission in early May to evacuate Indians stranded abroad due to travel restrictions from COVID-19 pandemic.