All British citizens arriving in India from Monday will face a mandatory 10-day quarantine irrespective of vaccination status. The measures come in response to the UK government's latest travel rules where Covishield is an approved vaccine against Covid-19 but India's vaccine certificate is not recognised. India's stern measure comes after the Indian government warned of ‘reciprocal measures’ to the UK government's differential treatment of India's vaccination.
Despite their vaccination status, all passengers from the United Kingdom will have to undergo a mandatory quarantine upon arrival in India. In addition, they will need to produce the result of the RT-PCR test done within 72 hours before travel. After their arrival and on day 8, they will have to take the RT-PCR tests again. The mandatory quarantine can be done at home or at the destination address. These new rules are exactly in line with UK's travel rules.
India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla called the rules "discriminatory" and warned that "reciprocal action" may be warranted.
The UK adjusted its policy to include the Covishield shot widely used in India as an approved vaccine, but India still isn't on the list of acceptable places to receive a dose. As a result, people who received Covishield in the UK count as vaccinated, while those who got it in India do not.
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Several rounds of meetings took place between Indian and UK representatives and one was attended by National Health Authority chairman RS Sharma and UK high commissioner Alex Ellis. After the meeting, both expressed satisfaction and said there seems to be no problem regarding Covishield or the certificate. Reports said India is mulling to add the full date of birth on the certificate for people travelling abroad.
However, the 'reciprocal'
move indicates that the issue over Covishield has not been resolved.