The Vande Bharat Mission (VBM) is a massive civilian repatriation operation launched by the Government of India. It was initiated in response to the global suspension of international commercial flights following the COVID-19 pandemic. The mission was announced in April 2020 and commenced on May 7, 2020, to bring home millions of Indian citizens stranded abroad due to lockdowns, job losses, or expired visas. It is considered the largest civilian evacuation exercise in history, surpassing the airlift of 1,77,000 people during the 1990-91 Gulf War.
The mechanism was a phased plan jointly coordinated by the Ministries of External Affairs, Home Affairs, and Civil Aviation. Stranded nationals had to register with the Indian Embassy or High Commission. Initially, the operations were conducted by Air India and Air India Express, with private carriers joining from the fourth phase. The Indian Navy also participated through Operation Samudra Setu for sea evacuations. Notably, the flights were commercial operations, and passengers were required to pay the airfares. Upon arrival, passengers were screened and advised to undergo mandatory quarantine, with state governments managing the arrangements.
The VBM is closely connected to the concept of 'air travel bubbles' or 'transport bubbles', which are temporary bilateral arrangements established with countries like the US and UK to restart commercial passenger services. The mission has evolved, continuing into its 16th phase as of October 2021, and was later utilized for other crisis evacuations, such as bringing back Indians from Ukraine in February 2022.