Australia carried out its first repatriation flight from India on Saturday after ending its controversial travel ban from the COVID-hit country, the government said.
The government said 80 people arrived in Darwin from New Delhi, pointing out that they would be quarantined for a fortnight.
The Qantas flight was originally scheduled to carry 150 people onboard, but 70 passengers were later barred from travel after testing positive for COVID-19 or coming into close contact with others who were.
Passengers had to show two negative COVID-19 tests before boarding the government-backed Qantas flight. Upon arrival, they were taken to a converted mining camp in Howard Springs in the Northern Territory for a two-week quarantine.
“We are following the medical advice and ensuring that we protect Australians here and I’m pleased that that first flight has arrived, and obviously there will be more flights to come,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said in a televised briefing.
“It’s important to do the testing that we are doing right now, before people come on those planes to Australia. That’s the process we are following, and we will continue to follow,” Frydenberg added.
Last month, the Australian government was highly criticized for its dire threat to jail citizens returning home from India, with critics labelling the Covid measure as "racist" and a breach of human rights.
However, the government asserted that these measures were based on medical advice aimed at protecting the community.
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