MEA welcomes WB govt willingness to accept returnees from abroad

The External Affairs Ministry on Friday said it welcomes the "willingness" of the West Bengal government to accept returnees from abroad and requested early confirmation of modalities to be followed upon the arrival of passengers at the Kolkata airport.

MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava was responding to a tweet from the West Bengal Home Department which said that the state government was keen to welcome back its people stranded abroad.

"GOWB keen to welcome back our people stranded in different countries and has long back communicated its agreement as well as quarantine arrangements details etc to GOI for special international inbound journeys. Letters attached. Bengal awaits flights," the West Bengal Home Department said in a tweet.

Srivastava replied to the tweet, saying the MEA welcomed the willingness of the West Bengal government to accept the returnees from abroad.

"Welcome willingness of GOWB to accept returnees from abroad, who are from West Bengal. Request early confirmation of modalities to be followed upon arrival of passengers at Kolkata Airport. @MoCA @HomeSecretaryWB," Srivastava said.

"Like other States, such detailed SOP is necessary to finalize repatriation flights to Kolkata from Dhaka, Bangkok,Yangon, Kathmandu, Singapore, London, Dubai and NYC. Also await confirmation on receiving 3,000 Indian nationals from Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan through our land borders," he said in another tweet.