‘Vande Bharat’: 84 of 141 new repatriation flights for Kerala; only 1 for Karnataka

News Network
May 25, 2020

The government of India has added 141 more flights to West Asian countries for the second phase of Vande Bharat Mission, its massive repatriation programme for citizens stranded overseas because of Covid-19-related travel restrictions.

The second phase was to end on May 22. However, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the ongoing phase will last till June 13 and that India is looking at making Frankfurt a hub for the mission.

With these new flights, more than half of them to the United Arab Emirates, the total number of flights in the second phase of the programme have gone up to more than 400, people familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity.

The flights were added due to increased demand from citizens stranded in West Asian countries and the availability of adequate quarantine facilities in states for the returning Indians, the people said. As with all the flights operated so far under Vande Bharat Mission, priority will be given in the second phase to Indian nationals with compelling reasons for returning to the country, they added.

The additional flights are from the UAE (81 flights), Oman and Saudi Arabia (15 flights each), Kuwait (14 flights), Qatar (11 flights) and Bahrain (five flights).

A majority of the flights are bound for Kerala (84 flights), while the other destinations are Delhi (10 flights), Tamil Nadu (nine flights), Telangana (six flights) Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir (five flights each), Bihar, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (four flights each), Punjab (three flights), Odisha and West Bengal (two flights each), Chandigarh, Karnataka and Goa (one flight each).

The other 260-odd flights being operated during the second phase of Vande Bharat Mission are from Armenia, Australia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, Egypt, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Oman, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Tajikistan, the UK, Ukraine and the US.

The second phase of the repatriation programme began on May 16 and will continue till June 13, with all the flights being operated by state-run Air India and its subsidiary Air India Express. Private airlines are likely to be included in the third phase.

As of Thursday, a total of 23,475 Indians have been repatriated under Vande Bharat Mission. The second phase had included new destinations such as Istanbul, Ho Chi Minh City and Lagos, and had increased flights to the US and Europe.

More than 259,000 Indians in 98 countries across the world have registered to return under Vande Bharat Mission. Most of them are workers (28%), students (25%), professionals (14.5%), and short-term visa holders such as tourists (7.6%). Fishermen, deportees and Indian nationals who benefited from visa amnesties have also registered.

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Uwaiz
 - 
Tuesday, 26 May 2020

No flights from oman to manglore nor to Banglore 

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News Network
March 6,2020

Udupi, Mar 6: District Health Officer Sudheer Chandra said that health department had compiled a list of foreigners visiting the Temple town Udupi and ensure that they are not infected with Coronavirus.

Addressing media persons at District Government Hospital in Ajjarkad on Friday, he said the Isolation Unit set up with five beds to treat the new Coronavirus infection includes two beds with Ventilator facility. Isolation wards with three beds were set up in Kundapur and Karkala taluks to treat the affected.

In order to prevent the spread of Coronavirus, Committees were formed at District and Taluk level, he added.

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News Network
February 27,2020

Bengaluru, Feb 27: Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan on Wednesday said the Union Government will take up the issue of establishing a US consulate in Bengaluru during bilateral talks with the US officials in the future.

Speaking at a seminar on Videsh Sampark here, Mr Muraleedharan said after Delhi and Mumbai, a large number of visa applications come from Bengaluru. “We will take up the issue of establishing a US consulate in Bengaluru during bilateral talks,” he said.

Earlier, the chief secretary of Karnataka TM Vijay Bhaskar urged the centre to consider the state government’s demand of setting up a US Consulate in Bengaluru. At the moment visa applicants have to travel to Chennai for the purpose.

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coastaldigest.com news network
July 20,2020

Lucknow, Jul 20: Dr Azizuddin Sheikh, who was fighting COVID-19 as a front line worker, passed away after contracting coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh. He is survived by a wife and three small children. 

40-year-old Dr Azizuddin, who hailed from Rajasthan, was serving as a paediatrician at Avanti Bai Hospital and Duffein Hospital, Lucknow for past few years. He had also worked in the Middle Eastern countries. 

When a large number of doctors preferred to stay home following the covid-19 outbreak, Dr Azizudin was working 16 to 17 hours battling the pandemic. 

According to sources, he tested positive for the covid-19 last month. “After the reports came positive, he had to call the concerned authorities many times to take him to the hospital,” recalled his family members.

He was first admitted to Lok Bandhu Hospital and was later shifted to KGMU after his condition deteriorated. Later he was taken to SGPGIMS.
 
“Despite following all the guidelines and taking every precaution while treating coronavirus patients, he tested positive for the covid-19. It’s a shock for all of us,” he said.

He used to console his family members and instill confidence among them, said one of his relatives. 

A local newspaper quoted his friends as saying that he was very dedicated in serving people that he used to take minimal possible fees from his patients. When the family asked him to increase consultation fees his reply would be, “They are poor people, how will they afford”?

After his death, one of his patients Alok Singh wrote about an incident. “When I asked doctor Sahib why he charges so less, his answer was I have to answer Allah. The truth that he has left us will always be the reason for our grief.”

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