New Delhi: Fifty-four days and counting.
A German national, travelling from Hanoi to Istanbul via New Delhi on March 18, got stuck as India suspended flight operations to and from Turkey from that very day due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Since then, the German man has been living in the transit area of Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport.
According to officials of the Delhi airport, the middle-aged man has a criminal record in Germany, and doesn’t want to return to his home country.
According to a spokesperson of the Delhi airport, he is being provided food and other essentials by airport officials since March 18. The Ministry of Civil Aviation and the German Embassy are aware of the situation.
“We confirm that a foreign national is currently in the transit area of the international terminal of the Delhi airport due to non-availability of regular flight to transit onwards,” a Delhi Airport International Limited (DIAL) spokesperson said. “Appropriate authorities were informed about this in good time. They are in dialogue with the foreign national.”
The Indian government announced a nationwide lockdown to check the spread of Covid-19 pandemic from March 25. Commercial passenger flight operations, within the country and outside, have been suspended from March 24, while flights to and from Turkey and China were stopped even before that.
