Govt planning evacuation of Bangladeshis stranded there

Bangladesh is weighing options to evacuate several hundred Bangladeshi citizens who have been stranded in India amid a 21-day lockdown that the country has been enforcing since March 24 in a bid to stop the transmission of novel coronavirus.

"We are working out the details on how to do it. We are talking to Biman Bangladesh, which we are considering to be the better option," Farid Hossain, press minister of Bangladesh High Commission in Delhi, told The Daily Star yesterday.

As of yesterday, more than 500 Bangladeshis, mostly in Chennai and Bengaluru, contacted the Bangladesh High Commission through its hotline number.

Majority of them want to return to Bangladesh, while some are facing financial problems and others need to extend their visas.

Farid Hossain said local Indian airlines are not available, adding that the High Commission is talking to Air India as well as Biman for evacuation of the stranded Bangladeshis.

"Those who will return to Bangladesh will have to pay themselves. If Biman is chartered, the passengers' relatives can buy tickets from Bangladesh. In that case, there will be no issues of money transfer," he said.

In that case, the Biman flight can come to Chennai from where the Bangladeshis can fly to Dhaka. However, the details will be notified after the government finalises the deal with the airline, he added.

The Indian external affairs ministry has assured Bangladesh of any assistance in this regard, the press minister said.

For those facing financial issues, the government has already talked to Bangladesh Bank. Their relatives can send money through Western Union using Bank Asia and Social Islamic Bank Limited, he added.

Bangladesh Bank also instructed the banks to lift the credit limit of those having credit cards, Farid Hossain said. "Indian Ministry of External Affairs also assured of extension of visas for those whose visas have expired or about to expire," he said.

Hossain said the Bangladeshis stranded in India can contact the hotline number of the Bangladesh High Commission -- +918595552494 -- for any assistance concerning this.