Foreign Minister Marise Payne says before the current outbreak the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade had eight flights scheduled to leave India in May – with a focus on transporting the 9,000 registered Australians in India.
Ms Payne said of the 9,000, 650 were registered as “vulnerable” – with the figure likely to increase as the situation in India worsens and while the “temporary pause” of flights out of India continues.
“We currently have just over 9,000 Australians registered in India – 650 of those are registered as vulnerable,” she said.
“As you would expect in the circumstances this number will certainly increase in the coming days and weeks as people’s circumstances change.
“When circumstances do allow, through this temporary pause, we will resume those flights and if possible seek to increase their frequency if we are able to.”