With three Indian naval war ships and 500 aircraft on standby, Modi government has given clear indication that it is all set to undertake in what could be the biggest repatriation operation of stranded Indian diaspora from the Gulf countries amid the coronavirus crisis.
As the clamour for repatriation is rising from hundreds of thousands of Indians in the virus-hit Gulf countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday that blue collar workers, who are hard hit by the global pandemic, will get the first seats in special repatriation flights. Students stranded in foreign countries will be next and then Indians who were travelling for work.
“The Prime Minister was very clear that the Indian expatriate workforce should get the first choice to return,” a top government official was quoted by Hindustan Times.
The official said Indian missions will be asked to compile a list and repatriation will be coordinated with respective states.
“It will be a complicated exercise. Indian missions abroad will compile a list of people who want to return to India, prioritise them and then coordinate with the states concerned. When they eventually land in India, everyone would have to be screened to figure if the person should be sent to a quarantine centre or straight to the hospital,” the official said.
The foreign ministry will have to set up a dedicated control room for this mammoth exercise, he added.
Indian new agency ANI on Tuesday quoted a top government official as saying that the government is assessing the scenario and finding the plan to evacuate Indians from the Gulf countries. “We have asked Air India and Indian Navy for a detailed evacuation plan.” ANI report said.
The Indian Navy, in their detailed evacuation plan submitted to the government, has mentioned that it “can evacuate 1,500 Indians from the Gulf countries in three warships of the navy.”
Amid the coronavirus scare, thousands of Indians have expressed willingness to come back to India from the Gulf countries, but due to the suspension of air operations and other modes of travel, they have been stuck there.
India has suspended all kinds of travel until May 3 as the country continues to be under coronavirus-induced lockdown.
Government sources also stressed that “many Indians have contacted the embassies through social media and emails, showing a willingness to return to their homes”.
“Around 10 million Indians are in Gulf countries and many of them are living in port cities, and that is why the government has also asked Indian Navy to give a detailed plan for evacuation through sea routes,” sources said.
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