Coronavirus: First AI flight to fetch Indians from China's Hubei departs Friday

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New Delhi: The Indian government has reached out to over 600 Indians living in China's Hubei province, the epicentre of coronavirus, to ascertain their willingness to be brought back to India.

The first Air India flight to bring back the Indian medical students stuck in Wuhan will depart from India on Friday. The information of the flight was revealed in a tentative notification issued to the students of Hubei University of Medicine in Wuhan. Another aircraft will be dispatched to fetch the Indians elsewhere.

Two flights have been prepared for their departure to China in the Mumbai International Airport.

India has already approached Chinese authorities to allow it to send two flights to Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, to bring back Indian nationals from the province.

"We have established contact with over 600 Indians across the province and are individually ascertaining their willingness to be repatriated. Our Mission in Beijing is working round-the-clock on the ground to work out the necessary logistics," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said at a media briefing.

He said the government has been conducting a regular review of the situation arising out of the outbreak of coronavirus in China.

The Indian embassy in Beijing said India was preparing to evacuate its citizens from Wuhan on Friday.

According to Chinese authorities, the nationwide death toll from novel coronavirus has jumped to 170.

"We have made a formal request to the government of China for bringing back Indian nationals from the Hubei province in two flights. We are awaiting for the necessary approval from the Chinese side. We hope this will be granted soon," Kumar said.

Kumar said arrangements are being put in place for people to travel to the airport in Wuhan.

"We remain committed to the safety and well-being of our nationals abroad. We appreciate the support extended by the government of China and other ministries in government of India in putting this process together," Kumar said.

(With inputs from PTI.)

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