Of those who returned to India, 17,485 migrant workers, 11,511 students and 8,633 professionals
New Delhi:
More than 1.07 lakh stranded Indians have returned to the country from abroad since the government launched the “ Vande Bharat ” evacuation mission on May 7, the Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday.
He said the government had started preparation for the third phase of the mission after the completion of the second phase of the evacuation on June 13.
“About 38,000 people are expected to be repatriated as part of this phase on 337 international flights from 31 countries,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava.
In the first phase of the mission, from May 7 to 15, the government evacuated approximately 15,000 people from 12 countries. The second phase of the evacuation mission was scheduled for May 17-22. However, the government extended it until June 13.
Air India has operated 103 flights in the second phase to bring back stranded Indian nationals from abroad, said Srivastava, adding that the Indian navy had also made trips to bring back Indians from Sri Lanka and Maldives .
“After Vande Bharat’s mission began on May 7, a total of 454 flights, including foreign carriers, have brought back stranded Indians. To date, 1,077,123 Indians have returned,” he said.
Those who returned to India included 17,485 migrant workers, 11,511 students and 8,633 professionals.
He said that more than 32,000 Indians returned through the land border checkpoints of Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
A total of 3.48,565 people registered with Indian missions requests for repatriation to India on compelling grounds.
In accordance with the government’s evacuation policy, Indians with “compelling reasons” to return such as pregnant women, the elderly, students and those at risk of deportation are taken home.
MEA spokesman said the third phase will cover more sectors and create additional hubs in remote regions.
