Commercial international flights to not resume until Jan 31: Centre amid Omicron fears

The flights under the "air bubble" agreements, however, will carry on as before.

International flights were earlier scheduled to resume from Dec 15.

However, with the outbreak of the new 'Omicron' variant in several nations, the country has deferred its plans for international flights resumption.

Extending the suspension on international flights till Jan 31, aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a circular that this restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flight specifically approved by it.

It further said that international flights may be allowed on selected routes on a case-to-case basis.

The Omicron variant has triggered a fresh wave of concerns over international travel across the world.

The strain has forced countries to impose fresh travel measures.

According to the health ministry guidelines issued last week, all passengers arriving from "at-risk" nations must compulsorily undergo PCR test.

Commercial international flights were suspended in March 2020 following the COVID-19 outbreak and the government had on Nov 26 announced its resumption from Dec 15 after a gap of over 20 months.