NEW DELHI: The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday said the phase 6 of the Vande Bharat Mission to repatriate Indians stranded abroad due to COVID-19 pandemic will begin on September 1.
Speaking on the Vande Bharat Mission's Phase 5, Anurag Srivastava, MEA Spokesperson, said the phase will culminate on August 31.
"Phase 6 of Vande Bharat Mission scheduled to begin on September 1, based on an assessment of demand by our missions abroad, flights are being rescheduled by Air India group and private carriers," Srivastava said at the weekly virtual briefing.
He further said, "During the Phase 5 of Vande Bharat Mission, which will end on August 31, 900 international flights have been operated from around 22 countries reaching 23 airports across India. More than 12 lakh stranded Indians have been repatriated by different modes under mission till August 26."
"The bubble arrangements will continue as per schedule in the next phase," he added.
India has so far established air bubbles arrangements with the US, UK, France, Germany, UAE, Qatar, and the Maldives.
The negotiations are underway with Australia, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Nigeria, Bahrain, Israel, Kenya, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand.