Ministry of External Affairs, in a statement on Saturday, has confirmed that it is working to resolve the issue of Indian nationals unable to land in India and said that they should be able return in “the next 2 to 3 days”.
Speaking to the press, Dammu Ravi, Additional Secretary, MEA, addressed the issue of a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Amsterdam-Delhi flight with 90 Indians on board that was forced to return on Friday amid scare over coronavirus.
The KLM fight, KL0871, did not have an approved flight plan, according to officials in Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
“We have received information that some Indian nationals who have got stuck in transit in Europe, mainly in London, Paris, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. But their origin are from US, Canada, Brazil and Europe (sic),” said Ravi.
“It is possible that there may have been gaps in interpretation by the airlines,” he added.
Ravi said that the ministry was working to resolve the issue and also sort out logistical issues so “that they get immediate help in returning.”
“This should be done in the next 2 to 3 days,” Ravi told the media during the briefing on COVID-19.
Earlier this week, India had extended its travel ban to the European Union as coronavirus cases rose sharply in Italy, Spain among other countries. As of Saturday, 21 March, Italy has reported the highest number of COVID-19-related deaths in the world at 3,407, surpassing China which has reported 3,254 deaths.
About 90 Indians, many of whom had sent messages to the Indian government, were on board the plane.
Sunday onwards, no international flights will be allowed to land in India for a week, the government said on Thursday as it escalated measures to fight coronavirus.
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