Kolkata Extends Ban On Flights From 6 Corona 'Hotspots' Till August 31

Flight operations at Kolkata airport will remain suspended on August 20 and 21 and August 27 and 28 and 31.

(File Photo/ Getty)

Kolkata Flight Ban: Even as air travel resumed across the country post lockdown, the flights remain suspended to Kolkata from Covid-19 hotspots till August end. The state government has said that the suspension of flights from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Nagpur and Ahmedabad to be extended till 31st August. As per the report in business daily Mint, the West Bengal Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Alapan Bandyopadhyay had intimated P S Kharola, the Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation in a letter dated 10 August. In an attempt to rein in Coronavirus cases in Kolkata, the Airport had earlier extended the temporary restriction on the arrival of flights to Kolkata Airport from six cities till August 15. The move has shattered travel plans of stranded passengers stuck in hotspots and unable to travel back home as a result of the lockdown situation in the state. Also, the report mentions that flight operations at Kolkata airport will remain suspended on August 20 and 21 and August 27 and 28 and 31. The state witnessed 2,905 new coronavirus infections, as per the state health department. It registered the highest single-day discharge of 3,208 Covid-19 patients taking the number of recovered people to 70,328. The state's Covid-19 tally has gone up to 98,459 while the active cases stood at 26,031, the bulletin said. The state is taking the measures as the situation remained grim. The ban has affected travellers who are forced to buy multiple flight tickets with stopovers located in other states in order to travel between Kolkata and the hotspot regions. To control the coronavirus spread in the state, the West Bengal government had also announced a complete state-wide lockdown for seven days in August.