In a circular issued by aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday, February 26, the Centre extended the ban on international commercial flights till March 31, in the wake of rising coronavirus cases.
The ban on scheduled overseas flights was to end on February 28 after an eleven-month gap.
“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 2359 hours IST of 31st March, 2021,” the DGCA statement read.
Though, the restrictions will not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specially approved by the aviation watchdog.
"International Scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes by the competent authority on a case-to-case basis," it added.
— DGCA (@DGCAIndia) February 26, 2021
However, the Centre allowed domestic flight operations later last year.
Meanwhile, the Home Ministry also said the existing COVID-19 guidelines will remain in force till March 31. In a statement, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said while there has been a substantial decline in the active and new cases, there is need to maintain surveillance, containment and caution so as to fully overcome the pandemic.
The restrictions on international flights in the country were announced in March last year to check the transmission of the coronavirus. Over the months, the Centre, which is the highest executive authority in matters related to the pandemic, has eased restrictions in most of the sectors of the economy but not the international flight operations.
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