Regular commercial international flights will not resume till January 31, the government announced on Thursday, amid a global alarm over the new Omicron variant of coronavirus. The ones under the "air bubble" agreements, however, will carry on as before.
International flights were earlier scheduled to resume from December 15. However, with the outbreak of the new 'Omicron' variant in several nations, the country has now put brakes on its plans for international flights resumption.
Extending the suspension on international flights till January 31, aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said in a circular that this restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flight specifically approved by it.
India recorded 8,503 new Covid cases on Thursday, taking the country's infection tally to 3,46,74,744. There are 94,943 active cases, which account for for less than one per cent of the total cases.
Here are the Highlights on Coronavirus cases in India:

S gene drop is an early indicator of the virus detected from a patient to be Omicron, possibly. It's an entry point & we are still learning. If it persists, there is a high chance of that (virus) being Omicron...: Dr VK Paul, Member-Health, NITI Aayog pic.twitter.com/ZY6h1thkGe
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021

Mask usage is declining in India. We have to remember that both vaccines and masks are important. As far as protection capability is concerned, we are now operating at a risky and unacceptable level. We should learn from the global situation: Dr VK Paul, Member-Health, NITI Aayog pic.twitter.com/KAC8eFySHd
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021

#WATCH | WHO is warning against the decline in mask usage. Global scene of Omicron is disturbing...
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021
We are now operating at a risky and unacceptable level. We have to remember that both vaccines and masks are important...: Dr VK Paul, Member-Health, NITI Aayog pic.twitter.com/kLtPb5Aa1F
WHO highlighted that public health measures should be abided by on a continual basis, besides vaccination. Adequate precautions have to be followed...Laxity in public health measures leading to a surge in cases in Europe: Lav Agarwal, Joint Secy, Union Health Ministry pic.twitter.com/6CFK8gXkZP
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021
Overall 25 Omicron cases in the country so far. All detected cases have mild symptoms. Less than 0.04% of total variants detected: Lav Agarwal, Joint Secy, Union Health Ministry pic.twitter.com/UJV1NGsVi5
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021
Gujarat | Health Dept teams of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation checks Covid-19 vaccine certificates & vaccinate people in marriage halls
- ANI (@ANI) December 9, 2021
"To complete the 2nd dose coverage, we're checking certificates & vaccinating ppl here at the spot only," says a health official (09.12) pic.twitter.com/jmfmVrGwA9
Amid the scare of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told the Rajya Sabha on Friday that the national transporter would do due diligence before resuming providing bedrolls to passengers in trains.
The wife and brother-in-law of an NRI man, who had been found infected with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 here in Gujarat a week back, were also detected with the new strain, officials of the Jamnagar Municipal Corporation (JMC) said on Friday.
With this, Gujarat now has three patients of Omicron, classified as a 'variant of concern' by the WHO after it was detected in Africa last month.
Twenty-four more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Ladakh, bringing the infection tally to 21,773, while the number of active cases in the Union Territory has reached 237, officials said.
Ladakh has recorded 215 coronavirus-related deaths -- 157 in Leh and 58 in Kargil -- since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, they said.

The first-semester exam for both undergraduate and postgraduate levels will be held in February, VC Sonali Chakrabarty Banerjee said
A woman contact of an Omicron case in Rajasthan has been found COVID-19 positive in Delhi and is being shifted to the Lok Nayak Hospital, officials said on Friday.
Gujarat | In view of the Omicron variant, we've prepared a special ward equipped with ventilator and oxygen support. We have enough stock of medicines, ventilators to handle the situation: Dr Ranjan Iyer, Medical Superintendent of SSG Hospital, Vadodara (09.12) pic.twitter.com/ipaSYeSU4a
- ANI (@ANI) December 10, 2021