New Delhi, March 26: Nearly 4.5 lakh Indian citizens have returned home since late February as the Centre accelerates a multi-agency effort to evacuate nationals stranded by the ongoing West Asia conflict. On Thursday, officials stated that while regional airspace and maritime routes remain disrupted, flight operations are gradually stabilizing through the use of additional services and complex evacuation corridors in neighboring countries.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways affirmed that all 540 Indian seafarers currently stationed on 20 Indian-flagged vessels in the Persian Gulf are safe. To manage the high volume of distress queries, a 24×7 control room established by the Directorate General of Shipping has already processed over 12,000 calls and emails. Officials declared that the repatriation of more than 674 seafarers has been successfully facilitated, with 39 returning within the last 24 hours alone.
The Ministry of External Affairs maintained that missions across the Gulf are working round the clock to recalibrate logistics in response to shifting airspace restrictions. Because routes in Kuwait and Bahrain remain closed, evacuation flights are currently being diverted through Dammam in Saudi Arabia, while alternative corridors have been activated via Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Jordan. Despite the regional volatility, authorities asserted that port operations in major coastal states like Gujarat and Maharashtra continue to function normally without congestion.
