International flight services suspended in India till July 31; VFS Global to resume visa application

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has announced suspension of all international flight services in India till July 31. According to the news reports, earlier the DGCA had cancelled international flight operations till July 15, but now the international scheduled flights will be permitted on specific routes depending upon the case. The suspension of international flight operations does not include all-cargo services and those approved by the DGCA.

As per the latest statement issued by the Government of India, the international passenger flight operations under the Vande Bharat Mission will restart in a phase-wise manner during Unlock 2.0. Further, opening up of international flights will take place in a measured manner.
Air India and many other private domestic players have been operating airlines under the Vande Bharat Mission since May 7. Till now, more than 4.75 lakh Indians stranded abroad have come home as per the recent statement of the ministry of external affairs.

pic.twitter.com/6CkU2hlSyi

— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) July 3, 2020

The Vande Bharat Mission has reached its fourth phase from June 2, under which more than 500 flights shall be operated. Private airlines will play a significant part in Phase 4; Indigo will run 219 and 238 flights from Kuwait and Qatar respectively, whereas GoAir will run 41 flights from Kuwait.
Under the fourth phase of the mission, Air India will send 114 flights to 17 countries across the world. These countries are Canada, the US, the UK, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Kyrgyzstan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Africa, Russia, Australia, Myanmar, Japan, Ukraine and Vietnam.

On the other hand, VFS Global will soon resume visa application services in the country. Tourists can apply for a visa under specific categories for Denmark, Dominican Republic, Belarus, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Norway, South Korea, Turkey, the UAE and United Kingdom.