Phase VIII of Vande Bharat Mission extended till December 31

The government of India has extended the time period of Phase VIII of Vande Bharat Mission initiated to evacuate Indians stranded abroad due to coronavirus-induced travel restrictions till December 31.

New Delhi: Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday informed that the Phase VIII of Vande Bharat Mission has been extended till December 31.

During his weekly media briefing, Srivastava said: "Under this extended phase, called Phase VIII+, 897 international flights have been scheduled to operate from 15 countries with the capacity to repatriate an estimated 1.5 lakh people."

He further informed that the bilateral air bubble arrangements with 18 countries are progressing smoothly.

As of December 3, 34.1 lakh Indians have been repatriated through different modes of the mission. The eighth phase of the Vande Bharat Mission was initiated earlier this month.

The Vande Bharat Mission started in early May to evacuate Indians stranded abroad due to coronavirus-induced travel restrictions.

ANI Report