Direct flights between India and China to resume after five years
The Sunday Mail
New Delhi. India and China will resume direct flights later this month after a break of more than five years. The Ministry of External Affairs stated that direct flights between India and China are set to resume from October 26. The ministry stated that India and China are ready to resume direct flights between select cities after a five-year hiatus. The ministry said this move will help gradually normalize bilateral relations. Budget airline IndiGo said it will launch non-stop daily flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou. The airline also plans to launch direct service between Delhi and Guangzhou soon after.
It is worth noting that direct passenger flights between the two countries were suspended in 2020 due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the souring of diplomatic relations following deadly clashes along the disputed Himalayan border. Despite the halt in air connectivity, China remains India’s largest bilateral trading partner, although India’s trade deficit with its neighbor continues to grow, reaching approximately $99.2 billion.
The resumption of flights comes just weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first visit to China in seven years to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. During the visit, Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping described the two countries as development partners, not rivals, and discussed ways to boost trade and economic cooperation amid growing global tariff uncertainty. Modi also raised India’s concerns over the trade imbalance and underscored the need for peace and stability along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), where tensions have been escalating since a prolonged military standoff following the 2020 Galwan Valley clash.
