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Direct flights between India and China resume after five years
The flights were first halted in early 2020 during the global travel shutdown caused by the pandemic
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Sun, 09, Nov 2025
- 23:40 EST
- 19
Passengers from India arriving in Shanghai welcomed by CGI Pratik Mathur / India in Shanghai via X
In a sign of thawing relations between the two countries, India and China have resumed direct flights to each other, after a gap of five years, with first flights landing in China on Nov. 9.
The flights between the two countries were initially halted due to a global travel shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic and have since continued, owing to the deadly border clashes between the countries in June 2020.
The first flight took off from Kolkata on Nov. 9 and reached Guangzhou. Direct flight from Delhi to Shanghai also followed.
Yu Jing, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in India, shared the news on X, writing, “Direct flights between China and India are now a reality.”
At Shanghai’s airport, India’s Consul General Pratik Mathur welcomed the first batch of passengers. The Consulate General of India in Shanghai posted on X, “India emerges as a global hub as people-to-people ties grow stronger.”
Fair Winds & Clear skies! ️
— India In Shanghai (@IndiaInShanghai) November 9, 2025
India emerges as a Global Hub as People to People ties grow stronger ️
CG @PratikMathur1 was at hand to receive the first set of passengers as direct flights resumed between New Delhi and Shanghai.
Jai Hind Jai Bharat … pic.twitter.com/z9ZeleLdF4
On the eve of the resumption, Mathur addressed India Studies scholars from around the world at the New York University campus in Shanghai. The three-day workshop, co-hosted by the Harvard-Yenching Institute of India-China Studies, emphasized the importance of mutual understanding to deepen academic and cultural connections.
In his remarks, Mathur underscored “the importance of the growing relationship and India’s emergence as the global partner of choice,” according to the Indian Consulate.
India shines bright as Voice of the Global South as People to People Exchanges gather steam ️
— India In Shanghai (@IndiaInShanghai) November 9, 2025
Strengthening Academic Exchanges and Partnerships
On the eve of launch of direct flights between New Delhi-Shanghai starting this evening, CG @PratikMathur1 addressed… pic.twitter.com/Vn61zA7GC8
India-China relations have entered a phase of cautious stabilization in 2025 following a late-2024 border agreement that eased Himalayan tensions and enabled high-level meetings, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in August.
ALSO READ: China's top diplomat Wang arrives in India
Despite the progress, the border dispute and several other issues remain unresolved, leaving ties between the two most populous nations prone to turbulence.
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