The Government of India on Thursday extended the ban on international scheduled commercial flights to and from India till February 28 amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, the restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights approved by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
“In partial modification of circular dated 26-06-2020, the competent authority has further extended the validity of circular issued on the subject cited above regarding Scheduled International commercial passenger services to/from India till 23:59 hrs IST of February 28, 2021. This restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by DGCA,” the government circular read. “However, International scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on case to case basis,” it added.
Earlier, the DGCA had extended the restriction on flights between India and the UK till February 14 to contain the spread of a new strain of Covid-19. Prior to this, several countries, including India, had suspended flight operations to the UK last month in the wake of the new mutant strain which was discovered in the United Kingdom.