The first flight under Vande Bharat Mission from Finland departed on Thursday for New Delhi with 227 stranded Indians onboard.
"#VandeBhaartMission flight AI 1184 & historic first passenger flight of @AirIndiaIn from Helsinki to New Delhi takes off with 227 pax incl senior citizens, stranded tourists, business visitors, students eager to join families," Indian embassy in Finland tweeted.
'Vande Bharat' mission is a Government of India's initiative to bring home Indian nationals stranded in various parts of the world due to restrictions over air travel to contain COVID-19 spread.
A total of 1,65,375 people have returned, including 29,034 migrant workers under Vande Bharat Mission, said Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava on Thursday.
The exercise began on May 7 and its second phase started on May 16.
The third phase of the exercise began on June 11 and continue till June 30.
( With inputs from ANI )