New Delhi, May 24: A day before the resumption of domestic flights in India, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has called a meeting of airlines and airport operators on Sunday to discuss the standard operating procedure (SOP). In the meeting, the ministry will also have discussions for states which have requested not to resume operations. The secretary of MoCA will head the meeting. Rules For Passengers, Airlines: Self-Declaration Form Mandatory; Here's What is Allowed at Airports And During Flight Travel, What Isn't.

States like Maharashtra and West Bengal opposed the resumption of flights. The Maharashtra government already made it clear to the Centre that it was impossible to arrange transport due to the rising coronavirus cases in the state. Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, tweeted, “It's extremely ill-advised to reopen airports in the red zone. Mere thermal scanning of the passengers, inadequate w/o swabs. Impossible to have autos/cabs/buses ply in current circumstances. Adding positive passenger will add Covid stress to red zone. #MaharashtraGovtCares.” Domestic Flight Operations in Maharashtra Yet to Get Green Signal From State Government: Reports.

ANI's Tweet:

Deshmukh added that id passengers are allowed to travel from green zone to red zone, it will put them to risk of exposure to COVID-19. As of now, flights operations will not resume in Mumbai. Similarly, flight operations are unlikely to function in Kolkata and Bagdogra from May 25 due to havoc wreaked by the Cyclone Amphan. Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu is yet to take the decision on resumption of flight operations.

Domestic flight operations are resuming after two months on May 25. Domestic and international flights were suspended in March last week, to avoid the spread of coronavirus. On Saturday, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri also hinted at the resumption of international flight operations. He said, “We will try to start a good percentage of international passenger flights before August.” He added, “We are doing the best we can and adding more flights.” Speaking of Aarogya Setu app, the minister said air passengers with green status on the application won't be quarantined.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 24, 2020 04:02 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).