Canada suspended all passenger flights from India and Pakistan for 30 days, Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra announced, citing increased Covid-19 cases detected in travelers arriving from these countries.
All commercial and passenger flights from India and Pakistan will be halted. However, cargo flights will continue, ministers said at a joint virtual Press conference.
“Given the higher number of cases of Covid-19 detected in air passengers arriving in Canada from India and Pakistan… I am suspending all commercial and private passenger flights arriving in Canada from Indian and Pakistan for 30 days,” Alghabra told a news conference.
“This is a temporary measure, while we assess the evolving situation and determine appropriate measures going forward,” he added.
The ban is being imposed to deal with concerns about rising case counts in India and mutations of the coronavirus. The ministers also urged Canadians to avoid non-essential travelling.
The 30-day period was decided after studying the epidemiological situation in India and Pakistan, the ministers added.
Passengers arriving in Canada from abroad are required already to undergo pre-boarding tests for Covid-19, tests on arrival and a government-mandated 14-day quarantine period.
