Operation Ganga: Two AI flights land in Delhi with 489 returnees; other private carriers step in

New Delhi: Air India's two evacuation flights came from Romanian capital Bucharest and Hungarian capital Budapest to Delhi on Monday with 489 Indian nationals who were stranded in Ukraine after the Russian military offensive, officials said.

Other private carriers such as SpiceJet, IndiGo and Air India Express have also sent their planes to the two cities for evacuation of Indians as the Ukraine airspace is closed

India began the evacuation of its citizens from Romania and Hungary - western neighbours of Ukraine - on Saturday and the Tata Group-owned Air India has brought back 1,396 Indian nationals in six evacuation flights till now.

On Monday, the fifth Air India flight landed in Delhi from Bucharest with 249 Indian nationals while the sixth flight arrived from Budapest here with 240 Indian nationals, the officials said.

Around 14,000 Indians, mainly college students, are currently stranded in Ukraine.

8,000 left Ukraine, ministers to be deployed

India managed to accelerate its efforts to get its nationals out of Ukraine in the last 24 hours, though the situation on the ground continues to be "complex and fluid" in terms of evacuation of people, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Monday.

It said a total of 1,396 Indians were brought back home in six flights as part of the evacuation mission and the total number of Indians who have left Ukraine since India issued the first advisory earlier this month is around 8,000.

The MEA said India is also sending humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

The government has already decided to send four Union ministers as the prime minister's envoys to Poland, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova to oversee the evacuation of Indians from Ukraine through its border crossings with these countries.

At a media briefing, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said Union minister Hardeep Puri will go to Hungary, Jyotiraditya Scindia will oversee the evacuation process in Romania and Moldova, Kiren Rijiju will travel to Slovakia and Gen. (retd) V K Singh is leaving for Poland.

"The special envoys will go to these countries to basically coordinate and oversee the evacuation process there on the ground," he said.

Bagchi said the "situation on the ground in terms of evacuation continues to be complex and fluid. Nevertheless, we have been able to accelerate our evaluation process clearly over the last 24 hours".

SpiceJet, Air India Express & IndiGo join mission

Meanwhile, SpiceJet said it will use its Boeing 737 MAX aircraft for this special flight that will depart from Delhi on Monday evening. The aircraft will fly to Budapest from Delhi and the return flight will operate via Kutaisi, Georgia, it mentioned.

SpiceJet said it is planning to operate more evacuation flights and is in discussion with the authorities concerned.

Tata Group-owned Air India Express said it will operate a Bucharest-Mumbai flight on Friday night with 182 stranded passengers. "The flight will have a stopover in Kuwait for refuelling. It will land in Mumbai at 9:30 AM tomorrow (Tuesday)," it added.

IndiGo said it is operating two evacuation flights using A321 aircraft to bring back Indian citizens safely, following the crisis in Ukraine. Both the flights will land in Delhi on Tuesday, it noted.

"These flights are being operated from Delhi to Bucharest, Romania and to Budapest, Hungary via Istanbul, today, as part of the Indian government's Operation Ganga mission," it mentioned.

India's largest airline said it is closely liaising with the government to offer its support for more such evacuations flights.

Students advised to catch trains

The Indian Embassy in Ukraine stated on Monday that the weekend curfew has been lifted in Kyiv and all students are advised to make their way to the railway station for onward journey to the western parts of the country.

"Ukraine Railways putting special trains for evacuations. We sincerely request all Indian nationals/students to remain calm, peaceful and united," it mentioned.

Ukraine Railways is running special trains for evacuation.

A large crowd can be expected at the railway stations, therefore, it is advised that all Indian students remain patient, composed and not to exhibit aggressive behaviour while at the railway stations, it noted.

"We expect delays in trains' schedule, even cancellation at times and long queues," it mentioned.

Indian students are requested to carry their passport, sufficient cash, ready-to-eat meals, easy accessible winter clothing and only essential items, to ensure easy mobility, it stated.

Be mindful of your belongings at all times, it advised.

"Ukrainians - both civilians and authorities - have been remarkably supportive in facilitating evacuation efforts of Indian citizens, especially considering these critical and dangerous times. You are all requested to respect this sentiment," it noted.

Travel advisory for Indians revised

Indian nationals being evacuated from Ukraine have been exempted from the mandatory Covid requirements for international arrivals, it was announced on Monday.

The Union Health Ministry on Monday revised the International Travel Guidelines, in collaboration with the Ministries of External Affairs, Civil Aviation, and Home to lend support in evacuating Indians from Ukraine.

Indian nationals not fulfilling either of the mandatory requirements of the pre-boarding negative RT-PCR test report or fully vaccinated certificate as laid down in the present 'Guidelines for International Arrivals' have been exempted from uploading these documents on Air-Suvidha Portal before departure to India.

Further, the ministry has allowed individuals who have completed their Covid-19 vaccination, irrespective of the country of departure/vaccination, to exit the arrival airport in India with the advice to self-monitor their health for the next 14 days.

In case a traveller is not able to submit a pre-arrival RT-PCR test or has not completed their Covid-19 vaccination, they have been allowed to submit their samples on arrival with the advice to continue to self-monitor their health for 14 days after arrival in India. If tested positive, they shall be clinically managed as per laid down protocol.