India-China direct flights resume after gap of five years; Kolkata to Guangzhou service departs tonight

Direct flights between India and mainland China resumed after nearly five years on Sunday. It is going to start with a scheduled service from Kolkata to Guangzhou departing October 26 at 10 pm, as per information shared by Chinese Embassy spokesperson Yu Jing on X. Air connectivity between the two countries has been suspended since 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and followed by border tensions that strained diplomatic ties. The restart is viewed as part of a gradual normalisation of exchanges between world’s two most populous nations.