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Onkar Singh in New Delhi
A day after the Indian government announced suspension of the flights of Pakistan International Airlines with effect from January 1, 2002, PIA staff is unsure whether they would be asked to stay put in India till the crisis blows over or return home.
"The staff of the high commission might have been reduced by the two governments and the PIA flights might have been banned by the Indian government, but there is no order which says that the staff of the PIA in India too have to leave," said a senior official of the PIA in Delhi.
The official on the condition of anonymity told rediff.com that the Pakistan High Commissioner Ashraf Jahangir Qazi had summoned the manager of the Delhi officer, A Raja, for discussions.
PIA has more than 150 officials posted in its two offices in Delhi and Mumbai.
The PIA office in Delhi on Friday was largely deserted and there were hardly any passengers wanting to take PIA flights.
The only passenger waiting turned out to be an Indian.
Nabibullah of Jammu had booked his ticket by PIA to travel to Saudi Arabia and had come to the airline office to check whether his ticket was still valid.
"I have to go to Saudi Arabia. I am booked to fly by PIA flight on December 29, if it does not work out then I would fly by a different airline," he said.
PIA officials looked worried and would not allow any journalist to stay within the office for more then a couple of minutes.
"If you have to meet passengers, please do so outside and not within our office," they told scribes curtly.
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