Over 10 lakh Indians returned from abroad under Vande Bharat mission

New Delhi: Over 10 lakh Indians have returned from abroad after the government launched the "Vande Bharat" evacuation mission on May 7 in view of the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday.

MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava tweeted, "Vande Bharat Mission crosses the 1 million mark!".

"We continue our efforts with the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to bring our nationals home," he tweeted.

Mr Srivastava also tagged Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri's tweet on Monday stating that nearly one million stranded Indians have returned through various modes under Vande Bharat Mission and more than 1,30,000 have flown to various countries.

"Driven by the aspirations of our people, the mission continues to facilitate repatriation and outbound travel of stranded and distressed citizens," he had said.

Currently phase 5 of the mission is underway.

This phase is expected to repatriate more than 1,30,000 Indians stranded abroad.