Flag carrier Air India has kept one of its 423-seater jumbo planes ready in Mumbai for the evacuation of Indian citizens from Wuhan province in China in the wake of a Cornovirus outbreak in the East Asian country, an official source said on Tuesday.

The airline is awaiting necessary approvals from the ministries of External Affairs and Health to operate the special evacuation flight, the source said. The decision follows the government instructions to various ministries to take steps to deal with the issue.