30,000 Indians to be evacuated from 31 nations in phase 2 of Vande Bharat Mission

During the first phase of the Vande Bharat mission, Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express are scheduled to operate a total 64 flights between May 7 and May 14 to bring 14,800 Indians from 12 countries.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Wednesday that 30,000 Indians will return from 31 countries on 149 flights between May 16 and 22, the duration for the second phase of the Vande Bharat Mission.

Indian nationals, who were stranded in Singapore amid Covid-19 pandemic, wait for screening after they were brought by a special Air India flight at IGI Airport in New Delhi on Friday.(PTI File Photo)

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During the first phase of the Vande Bharat mission, Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express are scheduled to operate a total 64 flights between May 7 and May 14 to bring 14,800 Indians from 12 countries on a payment basis.

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India has been under lockdown since March 25 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has infected more than 74,200 people and killed around 2,400 people in the country till now. All scheduled commercial passenger flights have been suspended for the lockdown period.