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International travellers will have to show negative Covid-19 test before boarding flight to Australia

Australia will require all international travellers to test negative for Covid-19 before boarding flights to the country, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday, as it tightened travel rules to stop the spread of the UK Covid-19 variant. Australia would also reduce by half the cap on international arrivals to some states until February 15, Morrison said.

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Vistara to operate Delhi-Frankfurt flights from Feb 18

Vistara has announced that it would be operating special, non-stop flights between Delhi and Frankfurt from February 18, 2021. The airline will fly twice a week between the two cities, on Thursdays and Saturdays, as part of the air bubble arrangement between India and Germany. The new route will be served by Vistara’s brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft, offering world-class service and hospitality in Business, Premium Economy and Economy cabins. Frankfurt is Vistara’s second destination in Europe after London, United Kingdom. Subject to existing regulations around transit traffic, passengers can also travel via Frankfurt to the rest of Germany and EU. Bookings for the flights are being progressively opened on all channels, including Vistara’s website, mobile app, and through travel agents. Commenting on the importance of this new route in Vistara’s network strategy, Leslie Thng, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, “As a key gateway to Germany and an ever-thriving metropolis that is a global hub of finance, commerce and trade, Frankfurt is another significant addition to our route network that also strengthens our presence in Europe. India and Germany enjoy very strong ties, the impressions of which are visible in many areas including business, science and technology, that continue to fuel demand for travel between the two countries. Not only this, Germany is also home to hundreds of thousands of Indians and people of Indian origin. Flyers from both, India and Germany, will now have the choice of flying India’s best airline on this route that is trusted by millions of people for its world-class products, service and on-point hygiene and safety protocols.”

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Indian Railways Extends Time Limit For Claiming Refund On Cancelled Train Tickets

Indian Railways has extended the time limit beyond six months and up to nine months from the date of the journey for cancellation of passenger reservation system (PRS) counter tickets and for claiming refund of fare across reservation counters. According to a statement released by the Railway Ministry, the time limit is extended for the tickets between the journey period - March 21, 2020 to July 31, 2020. The relaxation has been given for the submission of PRS counter tickets up to six months from the date of the journey. This relaxation is applicable only for the regular timetabled trains cancelled by Indian Railways. (Also Read: All You Need To Know About Latest IRCTC Ticket-Booking Rules ) In case of those train tickets cancelled through 139 or through the official e-ticketing IRCTC website, the time limit for surrendering of such tickets for the above-mentioned journey period, across reservation counter, is upto nine months from the date of journey. After the lapse of six months from the date of the journey, many railway passengers may have deposited the tickets to the claims office of zonal railways through ticket deposit receipt (TDR) or through the general application along with original train tickets. The full refund of fare on such PRS counter tickets will also be allowed for such passengers. Earlier, the guidelines for cancellation of tickets and refund of fare in view of the COVID-19 situation were issued. As per instructions for trains cancelled by Indian Railways, the relaxation has been given for submission of the PRS counter tickets upto six months from the date of journey, instead of three days excluding the day to journey. In case the PRS counter tickets are cancelled through 139 or through the IRCTC website, the refund across the counter will be provided upto six months from the date of journey.

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Covid-19: Negative coronavirus test required for air travel to Canada

As the winter surge of the pandemic continues in Canada, the government has made it mandatory for all Canada-bound international travellers to produce a negative Covid-19 test result before being allowed to board a flight to a Canadian destination. Air travel remains restricted to the country as the ban on entry of foreign nationals, first announced in March last year during the initial outbreak of Covid-19, remains in force. However, multiple flights continue to bring passengers into the country, including several each week from India, as part of an air bubble arrangement. Passengers booked on the incoming Vande Bharat Mission flights operated by Air India with a reciprocal arrangement with Air Canada, will be impacted by the new measures that went into force on Thursday. The government will only accept results from the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RTPCR) or transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification or RT-LAMP tests, which will have to be taken within 72 hours before the departure of the Canada-bound flight. The new measures have also resulted from a public backlash against several politicians who went abroad during the Christmas break in December, leading to the resignation of Indo-Canadian MP Kamal Khera from her post of parliamentary secretary to the minister of international development in PM Justin Trudeau’s government, among several others including the finance minister of the province of Ontario. Trudeau has criticised those who had chosen to vacation abroad while the second wave of Covid-19 has seized the country. The total number of confirmed cases in Canada stood at 626,317, a daily increase of over 8,000 new infections, surpassing the numbers witnessed in the spring. The number of fatalities has reached 16,369. More restrictions are coming into place in several Canadian jurisdictions. The hardest hit, the province of Quebec, has announced the first ever curfew in the country, lasting from 8pm to 5am for a month beginning on January 9. Similar negative tests are already required by other countries, including India, but such a step hadn’t been implemented earlier. Explaining the reason for the move, Canada’s transport minister Marc Garneau said during the course of a media interaction, “The Covid-19 pandemic is far from over. We need to continue to be vigilant, and we need to continue to take action to reduce the risks of spreading the virus by air travel.”

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Sri Lanka to reopen airports from Jan 21

Sri Lanka is set to reopen its airports for international travellers from January 21, 2021. Tourism minister of Sri Lanka, Prasanna Ranatunga said that strict health guidelines have been put in place across its airports for tourists. “There are nearly three million people in our country who are directly or indirectly dependent on the tourism industry. “Keeping this in mind, I announced that the airports will officially reopen on January 21 for tourists,” he said. Health guidelines for tourists: 1. Arrivals of tourists would be decided by the testing capacity of the private laboratories as determined by the Ministry of Health and Minister of Tourism jointly. 2. Mandatory to pay for two PCR tests if the visit is up to seven days or three PCR tests if the visit is for more than seven days. 3. Travellers should have Covid-19 insurance cover for a period of one month. 4. Pre-confirmed hotel booking is mandatory for the first 14 days in one or more certified safe and secure (Level 1) hotel.

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Sri Lanka, India discuss special zones for pharmaceutical & tourism

Sri Lanka has sought Coronavirus vaccines from India and the two countries had also discussed investments in infrastructure, energy, pharmaceutical and hotels, Foreign Ministers of the two countries said. India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister yesterday morning. He said Sri Lanka had expressed interest in getting vaccines from India. A meeting with the business community is being held today. “There are many proposals under discussion, including in infrastructure, energy, connectivity,” Minister Jaishankar said making statement with Minister Gunewardene. “Their early implementation is obviously in mutual interest and would definitely accelerate Sri Lanka’s economic recovery. Let me stress that Indian business is strongly interested in investing in Sri Lanka. “We have discussed some important opportunities including in special zones for pharmaceutical manufacturing as also in tourism. I will ensure an early follow-up.” Minister Dinesh Gunewardene said India’s neighborhood first policy had helped Sri Lanka during the Coronavirus crisis. Sri Lanka and India had discussed maritime sector and security issues, Minister Gunewardene said. “The green economy is complemented by the vast blue economy, that our surroundings are naturally gifted with,” Minister Gunewardene said.

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