Stranded Buddhist monks & tourists return to Thailand by chartered plane

More than 170 Buddhist monks andtourists from Thailand, who were stranded here due to theCOVID-19 induced lockdown, returned to their own country in achartered flight on Friday, officials said

After getting the nod from the Central government, achartered plane landed at Gaya airport on Friday and flew toThailand with 171 Buddhist monks and tourists who werestranded at Gaya following the lockdown, Gaya Airport DirectorDilip Kumar said

These tourists and Buddhist monks had come to visitthe Buddhist circuit of Gaya, Rajgir, Varanasi, Kushinagar,Vaishali before the lockdown was announced but got strandeddue to the shutdown, officials said, adding that they werestaying at Bodhgayas Thailand monastery and in differenthotels of Bodhgaya.