Seafarers typically join merchant vessels or return to India each month as a part of their contracts. But due to Covid-19 lockdowns and travel curbs, the crew change process got delayed
Current Affairs : More than 20,000 Indian sailors are set to get back or join obligations as transportation organizations and sea bodies plan extra contract flights.
“Among May and July 1 we have encouraged 40 contract flights empowering travel of around 8,000 sailors. We have gotten applications for another 10-15 sanction flights,” said Captain Daniel J Joseph, Deputy Director General of Shipping.
Ordinarily around 20,000 sailors join trader vessels or come back to India every month as a piece of their work contracts. Yet, due to Covid-19 related lockdowns and travel limitations the group change process got postponed.
Planned global departures from India are as yet suspended bringing about huge overabundance in group change. Anyway the governement has permitted travel of sailors on sanction flights. Sanction flights are additionally being accustomed to bring home abandoned workers of luxury ships and around 2500 of them have just get back.
Most sanctioned flights are being worked and intended to Colombo, Doha and Singapore for team development. Doha is being utilized as a travel point with group interfacing on Qatar Airways worldwide flights.
In an announcement, IndiGo said it flew 129 sailors from Doha to Delhi on June 11. SpiceJet is working contract trips among India and Colombo for delivery organizations.
Aditi Mehta 