India has extended the ban on scheduled international passenger flights till February 28, announced the country’s Director-General of Civil Aviation, over concerns of the rise in Omicron cases.
In a circular, DGCA said the restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by DGCA.
Also, flights under air bubble arrangement will not be affected.
India has formed air-bubble agreements with 28 countries, including Bangladesh, the USA, the UK, the UAE, Kenya, Bhutan and France.
Under the air-bubble agreement, special international flights can be operated by the airlines between two countries with specific restrictions. Scheduled international passenger flights to and from India remain suspended since March 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
It may be mentioned here, with 2,82,970 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India's total number of Covid-19 cases rose to 3,79,01,241, including 8,961 cases of the Omicron variant, saud the Union Health Ministry data updated on January 19.
The active cases have also risen to 18,31,000, the highest in 232 days.
