India has extended the ban on international passenger flights till April 14, 2020.

"It has been decided that all scheduled commercial passenger services shall remain closed till 1830 hours GMT of April 14, 2020," the latest advisory from Indian aviation regulator DGCA reads.

The ban will not apply to cargo flights and those passenger flights which are specifically approved by DGCA for evacuation purposes.

On March 19, India had banned all scheduled International passenger aircraft to depart for India after 5.30 am IST of March 22. The ban was supposed to last for a week till March 29.

In light of growing cases of coronavirus, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had proposed a nation-wide Janata Curfew on March 22 to practice social distancing, which is being advised globally as the best way to prevent coronavirus.

However, on March 24, PM Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown across the country and advised people to stay indoors. As a result, all trains, metro, flight, bus services have been suspended.

India has already banned domestic passenger flight operations as well from March 25.

First Published:Mar 26, 2020 7:10 PM IST