NEW DELHI: Indian authorities are in talks with several airlines on increasing the number of flights from Ukraine to facilitate the return of Indians who want to leave the eastern European nation amid tensions over a Russian troop build-up.
Discussions are underway between the external affairs and civil aviation ministries and several airlines on increasing flights between India and Ukraine, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. Control rooms were established in the Indian embassy in Kyiv and in the external affairs ministry in New Delhi to respond to queries of Indian nationals in Ukraine and their families in India. The embassy has also set up a 24-hour helpline.
The embassy in Kyiv acknowledged, in a brief statement on Wednesday, it has received “several appeals about non-availability of flights” to India, and advised students not to panic “but book the earliest available and convenient flights”. “To meet the additional demand, more flights are being planned in the near future, including from Ukraine International Airlines, Air India, etc. Details on the same would be shared by embassy as and when confirmed,” the statement added.
