Australians in India face anxious wait for flights home as COVID-19 cases spike

Melburnian Deborah Pacheco dreads getting a text message from someone she has not heard from for a while, as the COVID-19 death toll skyrockets in India.

She arrived in Goa last November to spend time with her family and has grown increasingly concerned as the pandemic enveloped the country.

“A lot of people who have died, family and friends, from this disease, and we’re hearing something every day. So it’s really disheartening,” she said.