It was a happy moment for thousands of expats stranded in different countries when the Omani authorities announced the decision to lift travel curbs. But their enthusiasm was dented by the sky-high air fares.
The rates were beyond the reach of many of the hapless workers, who have been away from their work for months. The rates were so high that they were to pay more than four times the price of normal-time fares to fly back to the country.
Although I was one among the many who travelled back to Muscat on the very first day from the southern Indian state of Kerala, to my utter shock I found that several seats were empty despite the fact that the airline company kept the rates moving upward!
Like several who boarded the flight on the very first day of opening the borders, I too did not have any other option, but to fly at the earliest to avoid the expiry of the visa and resident card.
But the financial hit I took due to fares was more than compensated at the Muscat airport where Oman Airports Authorities made elaborate arrangements for passengers to smoothly exit the airport without any difficulty.
With operations likely to return to pre-pandemic levels, to achieve the highest standards of health and safety at Oman Airports, Muscat International Airport has implemented safety measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 to ensure the safety and health of all passengers and employees at the airports.
Hundreds of employees were on duty to guide the passengers who are fully vaccinated and have PCR tests before arriving in Oman.
Outside the airport I found most places humming with activities unlike what it was when I left the country three months back. The airport taxi driver who took me to my second home in Oman summed up the prevailing mood of normalcy and expectations of recovery, “we cannot remain locked forever. We will win over the coronavirus”.
A few months ago, the iconic Expressway through which I was travelling back to my residence from the airport, was empty, with only street lights glistening on the asphalt. It was so empty that one could maybe hear the silence. I found the road full with vehicular traffic.
The fact that we are now, although not fully back to how it once was, started heaving a sigh of relief. People are back at their workplaces, children are expected to go back to school soon, and most importantly, people are finally able to live after undergoing tremendous stress during the pandemic.
No doubt, the authorities took the bull by the horns, as the adage goes, quite literally, and pushed aggressively with a robust vaccination drive. Now Oman can proudly say it is among the most vaccinated countries in the world with the number of vaccinated has increased to 2,592,464, representing 73 per cent of the targeted group,
And at the heart of it all was the impeccable medical infrastructure, with its dedicated and committed frontliners — the doctors, nurses and other paramedical staff. In addition to the existing hospitals, field hospitals and isolation centres were set up to provide top care to the infected patients.
In fact, it has been an unprecedented situation, never seen before, but the authorities rose up to the situation working as one team during the pandemic, making the country among the best globally in the fight against Covid-19.
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