The national airline, Maldivian, has evacuated 205 locals from Trivandrum, India.
Maldivian stated the 205 individuals who were evacuated from Trivandrum include individuals who had booked their tickets for the cancelled flight on March 21, as well as others who were seeking treatment in Trivandrum under the universal health insurance scheme of Aasandha Company Limited. They were evacuated through two repatriation flights.
Maldivian has been operating repatriation flights to different countries in order to evacuate Maldivians stranded in foreign countries which have been locked down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The national airline has also recently revised the ticket prices of its repatriation flights, following concerns from the public about the prices. As such, a ticket from Trivandrum is now sold at USD 199.
Trivandrum is one of the most frequently visited cities by Maldivians, mainly for medical purposes. In addition to Trivandrum, Maldivian has also evacuated 200 locals from Cochin, 100 locals from Colombo and 197 locals from Kuala Lumpur.