Aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah in Sri Lanka

NEW DELHI: India has strongly denied Pakistan media reports that it refused to grant airspace to Pakistani flights carrying humanitarian aid to Sri Lanka.Official sources said that given the fact that the request pertained to humanitarian assistance for Sri Lanka, India expeditiously cleared the request and intimated “Govt of Pakistan at 17.30hrs (IST) today through official channels”.“It was processed at the shortest notice period of four hours,” said a source, adding this gesture from India despite Pakistan having banned its airspace for Indian airlines was considered purely on humanitarian grounds. “Pakistani media, as usual, is indulging in propaganda and peddling fake news. These allegations are baseless and misleading. All requests for overflight or transit are processed strictly in accordance with established procedures and international norms,” said the official.India’s decisions on airspace permissions are governed by standard operational, technical and security assessments, not political considerations, according to govt.