Lockdown: NRIs leave for US, Canada through special flights

Out of the hundreds of NRIs from United States (US) and Canada stuck in Punjab amid the nationwide lockdown, 300 took chartered Air India planes on Tuesday from

Out of the hundreds of NRIs from United States (US) and Canada stuck in Punjab amid the nationwide lockdown, 300 took chartered Air India planes on Tuesday from Amritsar to New Delhi where they will board planes to their respective destinations abroad.

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Embassies of the above mentioned countries arranged the flights on demand of their citizens stuck in Punjab. Around 96 passengers were on way to the US, while 204 were headed for Canada. The NRIs were taken to Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, from where they will take flights for San Francisco (US) and Toronto (Canada).

Amritsar deputy commissioner Shivdular Singh Dhillon said the Punjab government issued them special curfew passes so that they could reach the airport.

“Most of these passengers have completed 14-day quarantine period but still medical teams examined them again inside the passenger terminal,” he said, while overseeing the arrangements at the airport. He said more NRIs will leave through chartered planes on April 9.

The DC said the UK government is also gearing up to airlift 4,000 NRIs from Punjab. However, the high cost of travel due to indirect flights has irked many of the NRIs, especially from Canada. Some activists are tying up with the airlines to facilitate the Canadian citizens in getting a direct flight from Amritsar airport.

Approximately, 2,600 NRIs from Canada are stranded in Punjab, as per the #CanadiansStuckinPunjab online initiative.

Blurb: UK government too gearing up to airlift 4,000 NRIs from Punjab