Vande Bharat Mission: Grateful to be back home, say students despite costly tickets

Vande Bharat Mission: Grateful to be back home, say students despite costly tickets; lack of in-flight social distancing spooks passengers Air India on 7 May began its first phase of one of the largest repatriation operations conducted by the government with as many as 64 flights flying to 12 international destinations to airlift about 15,000 stranded Indians who are stuck overseas due to the lockdown. The flights are operating from 12 countries in the first phase between 7 to 13 May, while in phase two, the government is set to conduct evacuations from 31 countries with 149 flights between 16 to 22 May. According to the government's elaborate evacuation, named Vande Bharat Mission, 40 of these special flights is operated by Air India while its subsidiary Air India Express is operating 24 flights to repatriate Indians from 12 countries — UAE, UK, US, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman, officials told PTI. Officials had also indicated that priority will be given to compelling cases such as medical, senior citizens, family emergencies, and those who are unemployed. The first phase of Vande Bharat Mission is currently on in full swing. As of 12 May (Tuesday), as many as 6,037 Indian nationals have been evacuated in 31 inbound flights operated by Air India and Air India Express under Vande Bharat Mission, according to the Ministry of Civil Aviation. [Read More]( To stop receiving these emails,[Unsubscribe](