Home   News   Article

Easter Ross couple stranded by Indian coronavirus lockdown 'desperate' to get home; Pleas for government assistance met with silence amid fears of increasing volatility


By Hector MacKenzie

Easier access to your trusted, local news. Subscribe to a digital package and support local news publishing.



Click here to sign up to our free newsletters!
Callumn and Karen Anderson in happier times during their trip to India.
Callumn and Karen Anderson in happier times during their trip to India.

AN Easter Ross couple left stranded in lockdown in India after international flights were suspended the day before they were due to return, have issued a heartfelt appeal for government help getting home.

Calumn and Karen Anderson flew out to Goa via New Delhi on March 4 to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary. They had been due to return on March 25.

But the celebratory return to the popular holiday destination on the south-western coast of India where they spent their honeymoon in 1995 turned into a nightmare when their scheduled and pre-booked flight home was cancelled as the country suddenly went into lockdown as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

Yet despite hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals being repatriated by governments from around the world since the crisis ramped up, the Andersons, from Alness, have met a wall of silence in efforts to get information from carrier British Airways and heard "absolutely nothing" from the British Consulate in New Delhi.

Mr Anderson told the Ross-shire Journal: "International flights were suspended with one day's notice and we still have had no communication from British Airways, not even to inform us that the flights were cancelled. If you flew in scheduled you were not allowed to fly out chartered so TUI flights were flying home with empty seats. This was lifted for the very last flight but almost nobody could get through to book tickets and that flight also left with empty seats. So there was no way of getting alternative flights and we are stranded.

"We have been on lockdown with no prior notice for 12 days with shops and pharmacies closed. Whilst we are safe and well some tourists have been evicted from their hotels and guest houses, some have been beaten up by the police just for walking to a pharmacy to try and get medication or walking to try and find a store open for food. There are elderly tourists in desperate need of medication and some areas within the state are very volatile.

"We were told to register with the British Consulate in New Delhi, which we did, but we have heard absolutely nothing since. Germany, France, Russia, Ireland and other countries have organized repatriation flights but we have heard absolutely nothing from the British Government."

He said he has helped an 80-year -old gentleman staying nearby to register with the British Consulate but didn't even get an automated reply from that email.

In an email to the British Consulate in New Delhi, outlining his full contact, passport and flight details, Mr Anderson wrote: "We are desperate to get home."

Their 30-day Indian travel visa is due to expire today.

He added: "It really is shocking that the UK government are just leaving their citizens completely abandoned and confused with no communication at all."

He added: "I have written to MP Jamie Stone who has contacted the office of the Foreign Secretary but to date has had no reply."

British Airways has acknowledged it faces huge challenges with countries closing borders. The Ross-shire Journal asked about the predicament of the Andersons. While the company would not directly comment on their case, it issued a statement: "As the Foreign Secretary outlined in his Downing Street briefing, we continue to partner with the Government on repatriation flights and are doing everything we can to bring customers home, including critical workers. Where governments have closed airspace, we are working with the Foreign Office to open these routes."

The carrier allows customers to reclaim refunds for cancelled flights for a period of up to 12 months. It also recommends passengers checking ba.com/managemybooking for any updates on their flight and to ensure contact details are up to date.

Easter Ross MP Jamie Stone has taken up the Andersons case. He said: "I hope that my direct appeal to the Foreign Secretary via his Private Office will get things moving."

He has asked the Foreign and Commonwealth Officeto make contact, providing it with the Andersons' mobile number, "with a view to their return to the UK as soon as possible".

The FCO states in its latest travel advice that cases of coronavirus (Covid-19) have been confirmed in India with the authorities there introducing a number of measures to limit the spread of the virus. That included the announcement on March 24 by Prime Minister Narendra Modiof a three-week lockdown across India that requires everyone to stay at home from midnight on March 25 – the day the Andersons were due to fly home – for 21 days.

Strict restrictions on movement are in now in place "unless for an essential purpose".

The FCO tells travellers: "The UK Government is working closely with Indian authorities and airlines to make sure options are available for you to return to the UK as soon as possible. This travel advice will be updated with information on exact timings and departure locations of flights from India as soon as they are confirmed."


Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.



This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies - Learn More