Domestic air travel will resume in India on May 25 after a two-month shutdown imposed to stop the spread of coronavirus, the aviation minister said yesterday, in a further easing of national lockdown restrictions.
The government halted all domestic flights – which ferried 144mn passengers as well as cargo across the country last year – on March 25, days after suspending international flights.
“All airports and air carriers are being informed to be ready for operations from 25th May,” Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Twitter.
No indication was given when international travel would resume.
The minister said the standard operating procedures (SOPs) for passenger movement would be issued soon.
A day earlier, Puri had said it was not only up to the central government to decide on the resumption of domestic flights, as states would also have to be ready to allow civil aviation operations.
The battered airline industry has started accepting ticket bookings for travel starting on June 1.
When contacted yesterday, many airline executives said they will now swiftly load new ticket bookings itineraries representing the new schedule from May 25 on online platforms.
However, this can only happen after new route allocation and SoP norms are issued.
Besides immediate financial relief, the move allows the airlines to keep their staff and aircraft ready for the restart of operations.
At present, some airlines have made cargo operations their main revenue stream.
Still, fixed cost, especially the employee compensation component alone, has dented their financial positions and stock prices.
Nevertheless, the latest announcement should bring some stability to the companies’ business continuity plans.
An airline executive said not all sectors are likely to be offered under the new bookings itinerary.
Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director of SpiceJet said: “This resumption will go a long way in lifting the overall economic sentiment in the country. While the SoP for resumption of operations and details of flights to be operated are awaited, we are sure that this much-awaited move will help a large number of passengers by providing them access to the safest and quickest means of transport.”
On his part, Aloke Bajpai, CEO and Co-founder of ixigo, an AI-based travel app, said: “It’s a positive step much awaited by airlines – we look forward to the detailed SoPs and guidelines.”
He said the industry “now needs to collaborate and focus on advertising all the confidence building measures that will reassure travellers to get back on a plane. Reopening domestic flights will give a big boost to our economy and kickstart the recovery of the travel industry which was the most affected during the lockdown.”
The announcement comes the same day as the country reported its biggest daily jump in coronavirus infections, with 5,611 new cases recorded in 24 hours.
It took the total to 106,750, with financial capital Mumbai the worst-hit city, according to government figures.
More than 3,300 people have died – though unofficial estimates are higher – and Mumbai accounts for almost a quarter of fatalities.
Other major cities such as New Delhi and Ahmedabad are also badly affected.
Mumbai authorities are looking to requisition thousands of private hospital beds, with state-run care facilities overwhelmed in the city of 20mn people.
“A plan is under consideration to take over 80% of beds in private hospitals for non-Covid cases,” Mumbai city spokesperson Vijay Khabale-Patil said.
With some virus patients reportedly sleeping on the streets outside hospitals waiting for beds to become free, authorities say they need to boost the 5,000 available for critically ill patients.
Mumbai has already had to build makeshift field hospitals and turned several landmarks into quarantine facilities, including a 19th-century horse-racing venue, a sports stadium that was used to host NBA games last year and a planetarium.
There are fears the start of the monsoon next month and the spread of diseases like dengue fever will add to the burden.
New Delhi, also home to 20mn people, has likewise been badly hit.
It now has more than 10,000 cases and while authorities have confirmed only 160 coronavirus deaths, media reports – citing cemetery records – say there have been almost triple that number at least.
Gujarat state’s largest city, Ahmedabad, has meanwhile recorded 8,945 cases with nearly 600 deaths.
Experts predict the epidemic will worsen in the major cities over the next month and infections are only expected to peak in June or July.
Despite the crisis in cities, the government has insisted it is keeping the spread under control.
from Gulf Times https://ift.tt/3g9Lsu0
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