Dharamshala receives first flight; dist admin withdraws no-entry-without-pass order

With domestic passenger services resuming from Monday across the country, barring some states, the Dharamshala airport received one flight as a 76-seater aircraft landed with 33 passengers onboard.

The passengers, their luggage and gadgets were sanitized at the airport before they left for their destinations.

Airport authorities said the flight later returned to Delhi, while two other planes, one from Delhi and another from Chandigarh, were cancelled on technical ground.

During normal times, Dharamshala receives two flights from Delhi and one from Chandigarh daily.

Meanwhile, the Dharamshala district administration amended its Sunday advisory on allowing further journey of incoming flight passengers. It has withdrawn a clause that made it mandatory for the passengers to obtain an entry pass from the district administration.

According to the Sunday advisory, the incoming person was required to show the entry pass from the concerned DMs on de-boarding here. The passes were to be obtained online before boarding the plane.

The advisory still says that only those with valid address proof of Himachal Pradesh (HP resident) only should book ticket to Dharamshala.

The DC advised the air travellers to "plan your flight booking accordingly".

DC Kangra Rakesh Prajapati said, "HP residents coming from Red Zone areas and those with ILI symptoms shall be put in institutional quarantine. And the persons, the non residents of HP/tourist, shall not be allowed entry in to the district. They shall immediately be put in institutional quarantine before being sent back on their own expenses."