Australia to resume repatriation flights from India
Australia to resume repatriation flights from India Friday, May 7, 2021 RNZ
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the ban on travel from India will not be extended beyond 15 May and repatriation flights will begin again as soon as the ban finishes.
The government s controversial ban, which made it an offence for people to try and re-enter Australia after being in India within the prior 14 days, began on Monday and was due to finish on 15 May.
Morrison said the National Security Committee met yesterday and agreed it saw no need to extend it beyond that date .
India travel ban to end on May 15: Aus PM
By IANS |
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29 March 2021, Australia, Canberra: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during a press conference at Parliament House. Morrison announced a cabinet reshuffle after a series of scandals that have dented his approval ratings. Photo: Mick Ts Image Source: IANS News
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison Image Source: IANS News
Canberra, May 7 : Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday announced that the ban on travel from India would end on May 15, paving the way for thousands of Australians stranded in the Covid-battered country to return home.
The controversial ban, which was introduced in response to India s ongoing coronavirus crisis, made it a criminal offence to try and enter Australia within 14 days of being in the country, reports Xinhua news agency.
Australia will lift a ban on its citizens returning from Covid-ravaged India next week, said PM
Reuters
May 07, 2021
PHOTO: REUTERS
Australia will lift a ban on its citizens returning from Covid-ravaged India next week, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday, as state officials reported that an outbreak in Sydney appeared to be contained.
Morrison stood by his decision to impose a biosecurity order last month barring all travel to and from India, a policy that drew heavy criticism from lawmakers, expatriates, and the Indian diaspora.
Morrison said the travel ban, which was controversially backed by jail terms and financial penalties for anybody who attempted to circumvent it by flying via a third country, had prevented Australia s hotel quarantine system from being overwhelmed.
Emmanuel Macron accused Anglo-Saxons of blocking vaccine exports today and hinted he could back plans to strip manufacturers of their patents to speed up delivery.
The French president, who has previously supported efforts by the EU to block exports to third-party nations, lashed out at the United States and the United Kingdom as he arrive at a summit in Portugal.
Britain is among a host of countries resisting calls led by US President Joe Biden and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for intellectual property rights on Covid-19 vaccines to be waived to boost jab rates in poorer countries.
Those backing the waiver including Harry and Meghan say it would allow poorer countries to produce the jabs for themselves - but many countries are resisting it amid concerns it would hit competition and the overall fight against the pandemic.
India’s Covid surge to peak in coming days
Predicts Modi’s advisers; WHO gives approval to Sinopharm’s vaccine
Lilaben Gautambhai Modi, 80, wearing an oxygen mask, sits inside an ambulance as she waits to enter a Covid-19 hospital for treatment, amidst the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), in Ahmedabad, India, May 5, 2021. Photo: Reuters
Agencies
Agencies
A mathematical model prepared by advisers to Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggests India s coronavirus outbreak could peak in the coming days, but the group s projections have been changing and were wrong last month.
The projection comes as the World Health Organization yesterday approved China s state-owned drugmaker Sinopharm s vaccine for emergency use, a boost to Beijing s push for a big role in inoculating the world.