As COVID cases continue to rise, the Indian government has decided to extend the ban on all scheduled international flights. The ban, which came into effect in March 2020 and has been extended multiple times since then, is fast approaching the two-year mark.
Restrictions extended for another month
India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), issued a fresh circular on January 19th announcing an extension of the international flight ban until February 28th. The latest decision comes in light of a sharp rise in COVID cases in the country.
As with previous extensions, the ban does not apply to international all-cargo operations and certain flights approved by the DGCA. Flights under bilateral agreements with certain countries will also continue to fly. India currently has an air bubble arrangement with more than 25 countries, including the UK, Germany, France, the US, Canada, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
While flight restrictions are not as severe as when the ban was first implemented in 2020, traveling internationally to and from India is still not the same. With not as many flight options as before, ticket prices have generally gone up. The nature of the virus and new outbreaks means ever-changing protocols which have kept authorities on their toes and passengers sometimes confused.
— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) January 19, 2022
Almost two years
When India first banned scheduled international travel in March 2020, nobody could have predicted for sure it would approach the two-year mark. Over the last two years, the Indian government has been extending the ban every month after carefully observing the virus’s progression.
Back in 2020, when the World Health Organization first declared the virus a global pandemic, India reacted swiftly by suspending all visas to contain the spread. This was followed by a strict flight ban on March 23rd. Since then, there has been a gradual easing of international travel by mutual agreements with various countries but never a complete resumption of scheduled flights.
There had been brief periods when cases dropped significantly, and things were looking up only to be shattered by new waves such as the Delta variant almost a year ago. Then late last year, the government decided to resume scheduled international flights in a controlled manner, but rising Omicron cases put an end to that plan as well.
India was supposed to lift quite a few restrictions on international flights from December 15th last year but had to pull back due to new COVID cases worldwide. The home secretary held a review meeting, and the plan to resume scheduled international flights was pushed back further.
Where are we now?
It seems quite likely that the ban could see a further extension given the COVID situation in the country. India reported more than 300,000 new cases on Wednesday, and the situation around the world is just as tricky.
While it’s believed that the present variant does not cause disease as severe as some of the previous ones, the rise in cases has made the government err on the side of caution. It seems that flying under COVID restrictions will likely be the norm for some time to come.
How have COVID restrictions affected your international travel? Do share your comments below.
Source: https://simpleflying.com/india-international-flight-ban-february/
