After 2 years, India resumes int'l flights

India Sunday allowed the resumption of all international flights at full capacity, after a Covid-induced hiatus of over two years.

In a statement, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said that "six Indian airlines and 60 foreign airlines will start connecting India with 63 countries from today".

"Covid-safety protocols at airports and on board flights like keeping the middle seat vacant for social distancing have also been eased," a senior aviation official told the local media.

Earlier this month, Indian Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia tweeted to announce the government's decision.

"After deliberation with stakeholders & keeping in view the decline in the #COVID19 caseload,we have decided to resume international travel from Mar 27 onwards," he wrote.

The Indian government put curbs on all domestic and international flights in March 2020 in the wake of the Covid-induced lockdown across the country.

Though it allowed domestic flights to ply from May 2020, restrictions prevailed on global flights till the government allowed the entry of all foreigners except tourists from October that year under the "Bubble arrangement" that forced airlines to jack up ticket prices.

Though the Civil Aviation Ministry had earlier decided to resume international flights from December last year, the plan was shelved in the wake of the detection of the new  'Omicron' variant of Covid.