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Restrictions on Indians entering Sri Lanka: Indians can transit in Sri Lanka  

09 May 2021

  • Repatriations and other foreign travellers to the country continue  

By Maheesha Mudugamuwa     Transit passengers from India would not be affected by last week’s travel ban imposed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Indian travellers arriving in Sri Lanka, especially Indians entering the island for quarantine purposes, The Sunday Morning learnt.   The travel ban imposed by the CAA on people arriving from India, stricken by the coronavirus pandemic, came into effect last Wednesday (5). The decision was taken as per the directives issued by the Health Ministry to control the entering of new Covid-19 variants into Sri Lanka and thereby to stop the spread of the virus within the country.   In a statement issued on Wednesday, the CAA said: “In accordance with instructions received from the health authorities of Sri Lanka due to the Covid-19 pandemic situation, it is hereby directed that passengers travelling from India will not be permitted to disembark in Sri Lanka with immediate effect.”   According to the CAA, the aforementioned restrictions will be reviewed as early as possible based on instructions of the local health authorities.   It is learnt that Sri Lanka has so far imposed travel restrictions only on India, despite the situation of some other countries such as Brazil and Turkey also being considered by most of the aviation authorities around the world, given the recent Covid-19 surge in those countries.   Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Airport and Aviation Services Ltd. (AASL) Chairman Major General (Retd.) G.A. Chandrasiri said that there were no restrictions on transit passengers including passengers from India to use Sri Lanka as their transit point, as the transit passengers do not enter the country.   He also said no new restrictions have been introduced on handling airport services as of now.   “We were not informed of any new restrictions from the CAA,” Chandrasiri added.   Prior to the travel restrictions imposed on India, the CAA had instructed all airlines to limit their passengers to Sri Lanka to 75 per aircraft for two weeks with effect from last Monday (3). Accordingly, the CAA will assess the situation in the country after two weeks and a decision will be made on whether to lift the restrictions or further tighten them.   Meanwhile, Singapore banned entry or transit for visitors with recent travel history to Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The ban covers all long-term pass holders and short-term visitors who have been in the four countries in the last 14 days, including transit. Similarly, Italy has also banned travel from Sri Lanka amid the Covid-19 emergency in neighbouring India, as well as tightening quarantine rules for residents who have recently returned from the country.   As per statistics of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Board (SLTDB), a total number of 4,168 international tourists have arrived in Sri Lanka during April 2021.   The largest source markets recorded for the month of April was India, followed by China and Kazakhstan.   According to the SLTDA, Europe became the largest source of tourist traffic to Sri Lanka with 50.9% of the total traffic received in April 2021. Asia and Pacific accounted for 35.7% of the total traffic while the US accounted for 10%.   In comparison to arrivals up to April last year, all regions have recorded a decline in arrivals. It is noteworthy that total arrivals up to April from Kazakhstan had recorded a growth in comparison to total arrivals up to April 2020.   India, China, Kazakhstan, Germany, and the UK were Sri Lanka’s top five international tourist-generating markets in the month of April this year. India was the largest source of tourist traffic to Sri Lanka with 19% of the total traffic received in the above period. A total number of 796 Indians have arrived in the country in April.   China accounted for 11.4% of the total traffic while Kazakhstan, Germany, and the UK accounted for 10.6%, 9.2%, and 8% respectively. A total number of 475, 440, 383, and 334 tourists from China, Kazakhstan, Germany, and the UK arrived in the country last month, respectively.   As of 30 April 2021, 13,797 tourists had visited Sri Lanka this year. It is a decline of 97.3% over last year when 507,311 tourists had visited the country from January to 18 March 2020. The figures reflect the evolution of Covid-19 and its palpable impact on the travel and tourism industry.   Tourists are arriving in the country at a time when the country’s health resources are being overused due to the current surge of coronavirus cases.   However, no decision has been announced as of yet by the Government to put any restrictions on tourist arrivals except a postponement to the travel bubble between India and Sri Lanka.   According to the Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry, 1,939 new Covid-19 cases were reported on Thursday (6). Among the positive cases identified on Thursday are 1,851 associates of the New Year Covid-19 cluster and 44 foreign arrivals. According to the Epidemiology Unit report at 11:30 p.m. Thursday, a total of 119,424 Covid-19 cases have been reported and 17,794 infected patients are being treated at hospitals. (PLEASE UPDATE NUMBERS ON SATURDAY)   Sri Lanka confirmed 11 deaths due to Covid-19 on Thursday raising the total to 745, and 100,885 patients have fully recovered and been discharged from hospitals. (UPDATE ON SATURDAY)   Even as the situation in Sri Lanka, as observed by health experts, is getting worse day by day due to the sudden spike of cases in the third coronavirus wave in the country, The Sunday Morning learnt that the repatriation process would also be continued without any restrictions.   When contacted, Army Commander General Shavendra Silva confirmed the continuation of the repatriation process.   He told The Sunday Morning that there were no restrictions put on the repatriation process and it is continuing without any issue.   When asked about the numbers of Sri Lankans on the waiting list to arrive in the country, the Army Chief noted that there was no such waiting list as of now and the passengers arriving.   “We were not given a list from the Foreign Ministry and passengers are arriving on a daily basis,” he added.   However, in January, the Foreign Ministry stated that an estimated 68,000 Sri Lankans from various overseas regions have been waitlisted by the Ministry for repatriation.   It also stated that since the evacuation of 33 students from Wuhan City, in February 2020, the Ministry has been carrying out the task of repatriation and as of January 2021, 60,470 Sri Lankans, comprising pilgrims, students, officials of government or armed forces, migrant workers, short-term visitors, seafarers, and cases on compassionate grounds have been repatriated from 137 countries by the Ministry through the Sri Lanka Missions overseas.   Over 40,000 migrant workers, predominantly from the Middle East region have been the top segment of overseas workers who have benefitted so far whereas another 20,000 Sri Lankans have been brought down from Europe, Africa, Asia, and Latin America. As the conditions abroad deteriorate and due to a large number of layoffs and other courses of unemployment, the number of prospective returnees keeps rising.   Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Navy, last week said it had deployed additional naval units to patrol the northern and western sea waters to prevent the illegal entry of migrants, including from India, which could heighten the coronavirus outbreak in the country.   Accordingly, steps have been taken to deploy more ships (OPV and FGBs) and fast attack craft to raise surveillance in the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) as well as inshore patrol craft to patrol the coastal waters of the island. Incidentally, the Eastern Naval Command has attached some of its ships and craft to the Northern Naval Command, whereas the Western Naval Command has deployed additional ships and craft to patrol the sea area extending from Chilaw to Mannar, for these special operations.   Moreover, the Navy has increased foot patrols to add weight to the security in the coastal areas and has established coastal observation points in selected locations as well. Similarly, the Navy has urged the fishing community in respective areas to be vigilant regarding the possible arrival of illegal immigrants and inform relevant authorities, if any suspicious activity is observed in this regard. They have also been informed not to make contact with foreigners engaging in smuggling activities at sea. At this crucial juncture, the Navy urges all fishing communities to refrain from having any contact with foreign fishing vessels at sea and to provide information to the Navy if they know of any such smugglers.   According to the Sri Lanka Navy, by virtue of special patrols being conducted in the sea area close to the Palk Strait these days to prevent illegal immigrants from entering Sri Lankan waters, the Navy was able to prevent 11 Indian fishing vessels with 86 individuals, from their suspicious attempt to enter Sri Lankan waters on 4 May. 


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