NRIs stranded in India must wait for GCAA word to book UAE tickets

News Network

July 22, 2021

Newsroom, July 22: Thousands of Indians stranded in their home countries unable to return to their jobs in the United Arab Emirates due to covid restrictions and flight ban rushed to buy tickets at unprecedentedly higher rates whenever travel agencies opened booking, albeit briefly. Travellers many countries including India are not allowed to enter the UAE until they spend 14 days quarantining in a third nation.

The UAE introduced the travel restrictions earlier this year to control the spread of the newer variants of covid-19. Since then, the stranded expats have left no stone unturned in their attempts to return to the UAE.

While some have returned on charter flights by spending a huge amount, some quarantined themselves for 15 days in places as far as Armenia, Uzbekistan, Serbia, Ethiopia and Qatar. Such quarantine packages cost an average of Dh9,000 per passenger. The rest live in an agonising limbo.

Expats stuck in India were provided a faint glimmer of hope on June 19 when the Dubai Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management announced relaxations for fully-vaccinated passengers starting June 23. Major carriers have since been deferring final travel dates and extending inbound passenger suspensions on a routine basis. New dates signalling the end of travel suspensions are now announced by airlines more frequent than weekly, sending the stranded passengers on an emotional roller-coaster.

However, the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has firmly maintained that the inbound travel suspension will remain in place until further notice. “The UAE government is closely monitoring the situation and will provide further updates and instructions as necessary,” said the GCAA recently.

While a lack of clarity on when the suspension will end leaves the stranded residents frustrated, we should not forget that the world is navigating unprecedented times. While aggressive vaccine campaigns and Covid protocols bring about a lull in infections in some parts of the world, deadlier and more contagious variants of the pathogen rear their ugly heads in other countries. The pandemic has turned into a never-ending Whac-A-Mole game.

Thousands of passengers are still glued to updates shared by airlines on social media, booking and re-booking flight tickets every time a new travel date is announced. Travel agents have highly recommended those wishing to travel must await a formal announcement from either the GCAA or the National Crisis and Emergency Management Authority on the end date before booking their tickets, instead of wasting precious time and money and losing peace of mind.

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Saffron wave sweeps Udupi during PM Modi’s roadshow

coastaldigest.com news network

November 28,2025

Udupi district transformed into a sea of saffron and celebration on Friday, November 28, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s roadshow swept through the coastal temple town. Thousands of residents lined the streets, turning the event into a vibrant public spectacle filled with cheers, flags, and festive energy.

The procession route—from the helipad to the historic Sri Krishna Math—was decked with buntings, saffron flags, and multilayered security barricades. One of the district’s largest-ever security deployments was put in place for the high-profile visit, with over 3,000 police personnel on duty. The arrangement included ten SPs, 27 DSPs, 49 inspectors, 127 sub-inspectors, 232 assistant sub-inspectors, 1,608 constables, and 39 women staff.

Six platoons of the Karnataka State Reserve Police, six Quick Response Teams, bomb detection units, and dog squads were stationed across Udupi. Enhanced surveillance covered Adi Udupi, Bannanje bus stand, and the Sri Krishna Math parking zone, with combing operations carried out along the roadshow corridor.

At the 800-year-old Sri Krishna Math, preparations reached a ceremonial peak. Paryaya Puttige Math seer Sugunendra Teertha Swamiji said the Prime Minister would take part in the Laksha Kantha Geetha Parayana, a mass chanting of the Bhagavad Gita by one lakh devotees, and inaugurate the new Suvarna Teertha Mantapa.

“He will first offer floral tributes to saint-poet Kanakadasa and then unveil the golden covering over the Kanakana Kindi,” the seer said.

The Prime Minister will also receive a Poorna Kumbha welcome and have darshan of Lord Sri Krishna, Mukhyaprana Devaru, and the Suvarna Paduke. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, Minister Bairathi Suresh, Dharmadhikari D. Veerendra Heggade, and seers from the Ashta Maths are expected to join the ceremony.

Ahead of his arrival, the Prime Minister posted on X that he felt “honoured” to attend the spiritually significant gathering. “This is a special occasion that brings together people from different sections of society for a recital of the Gita. This Matha has a very special significance in our cultural life,” he wrote, noting the institution’s long-standing legacy rooted in the teachings of Sri Madhvacharya.

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