The U.K. has announced charter flights from South Indian cities, including Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram, to rescue stranded British nationals in the region.
According to a release, over 3,000 British travellers are currently stranded in India and will get home on 12 flights which opened for bookings on Friday.
This follows the seven charter flights announced on April 5 from Goa, Mumbai and New Delhi, and will take the total number of people brought back on these 19 flights to around 5,000.
The first charter flight from India arrived at London Stanstead on Thursday morning with 317 British nationals on board from Goa, the release said.
U.K. Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth, Tariq Ahmad said: “We are doing all we can to get thousands of British travellers in India home. This is a huge and complex operation which also involves working with the Indian government to enable people to move within India to get on these flights. Over 300 people arrived from Goa on Thursday morning, 1,400 more will arrive over the Easter weekend and these 12 flights next week will bring back thousands more.”
The release also quoted Jan Thompson, Acting High Commissioner to India, as saying: “We can confirm 12 more charter flights to bring British travellers back home on top of the flights already launched. We are extremely grateful for the support we are receiving from the Government of India on this. Getting people home as quickly as possible remains our absolute priority.”
The flights are for U.K. travellers who normally reside in the U.K. and their direct dependants. A number of seats will be reserved for those deemed vulnerable.
To book flights and register their details, British nationals have been asked to use the city-specific webpages listed on the India Travel Advice page.
“Movement within India is currently very restricted. The British High Commission will contact those who have confirmed seats on the flight with further details regarding transport. Those who are eligible to fly will be sent information on how to get to airports and flight itineraries directly when their seat is confirmed. Details regarding luggage allowance, flight costs and carriers will be available on the booking portal,” the release added.
The following flights to London are scheduled for the next two weeks:
· Amritsar - U.K.: April 13, 17, 19
· Ahmedabad - U.K.: April 13, 15
· Goa - U.K.: April 14, 16
· Goa (via Mumbai) - U.K.: April 18
· Thiruvananthapuram (via Kochi) - U.K.: April 15
· Hyderabad (via Ahmedabad) - U.K.: April 17
· Kolkata (via Delhi) - U.K.: April 19
· Chennai (via Bengaluru) - U.K.: April 20
Consular helpline numbers: New Delhi: +91 (11) 2419 2100; Chennai: +91 (44) 42192151; Mumbai/Goa: +91 (22) 6650 2222.
