Students forced to pay up to $7 000 to get to Canada
Direct flights from India to Canada have been banned by the Canadian government for over five months. On Aug. 9, Canada extended the ban to Sept. 21. With the ban in place, international students from India have had to scramble to get to Canada for their in-person classes.
The Government of Canada says these students can come to Canada as essential travellers and can be vaccinated in Canada if they are not already. However, they have to take indirect routes.
“I have to go to the third country, pay for the test, and also pay for the hotel [which is] really expensive … so yes, it is really very disappointing,” said Saakshi Bundeliya, a Thompson Rivers University student from India trying to return to Canada for school, told the Martlet.
Indian students want to get to Canada but the ban on direct flights has put them at the mercy of the high costs, stressful decisions, and indirect routes.
Indirect flights and COVID-19 tests
Indian students have to tackle two challenges: they have to book an indirect flight to Canada and they have to get a PCR COVID-19 test in a country other than India or Canada.
These challenges come at a cost. Indirect flights can cost two to three times more than a typical direct flight. The COVID-19 test requirement also means that students have to book a stay in another country for a few days while they wait for their results.
Students can get indirect flights that stop in countries like Mexico, Germany, Qatar, Serbia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Maldives. But they have to book a flight that allows them to stop over for a few days and get that PCR test before they travel to Canada.
Students are worried that each stop, however, increases their risk of exposure to COVID-19.
“During COVID, you just want to travel directly to Canada, but then travelling via a third country is also risking the…