New Delhi: Once international flights start, there will be more than 1,50,000 workers who will return to India from the UAE. This figure has been provided by the Indian missions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). However, till now there is no concrete information when flights will resume.
Consul-General’s statement
“About 40 per cent of the applicants are workers and 20 per cent are professionals. Overall, 25 per cent have cited job-loss as the reason for leaving the country,” India’s Consul General Vipul has been quoted as saying by ‘Gulf News’.
Among those who have registered their names online, 10% are tourists. They got stranded in the UAE once the lockdown was imposed in India. There are also a large number of students wanting to return home. Among others there are quite a few people who want to avail of medical facilities in Indi, informed the Consul-General.
The e-registration process began Wednesday night. It is being done by both the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the consulate in Dubai. The process started when there were a large number of queries about returning to India. Initially the queries came from those who lost their jobs due to the pandemic coronavirus.
Majority from Kerala
Consul-General Vipul has also been quoted as saying that more than 50 per cent of those who have registered belong to Kerala. It should be stated here that Keralites comprise more than one million of the 3.4 million Indian population in the UAE.
No concrete information
Vipul has also said there has been no concrete information from the Indian government as to when flights will resume. The government is yet to tell us regarding how the COVID-19 test results of the applicants will be assessed.
“There are high-level discussions going on regarding these things,” the Conul-General has said. He has added that ‘e-registration would be open till the time the issue (of repatriating Indians wishing to return home) stablilises’.
Agencies