British nationals arriving in India, regardless of their vaccination status, must undergo a 10-day compulsory quarantine from October 4th, which is part of a reciprocal action initiated by the government after the vaccine certification dispute between the two countries.

According to official sources, India has decided to take reciprocal action against British nationals arriving in India because the issue related to the UK’s non-recognition of Indian vaccine certificates cannot be resolved. India’s new regulations will take effect on October 4th and apply to all British nationals arriving in India from the UK. According to the regulations, all British nationals arriving in India from the UK, regardless of their vaccination status, must undergo a pre-departure COVID-19 RT-PRC test within 72 hours before travel. They must also undergo a COVID-19 RT-PCR test upon arrival. British nationals, regardless of their vaccination status, must undergo RT-PCR testing again on the 8th day of arrival in India. British nationals must also undergo mandatory quarantine at home or at the destination address for 10 days upon arrival.

These measures will be introduced after the UK government recently issued an updated international travel advisory to include AstraZeneca Covishield in the eligible COVID-19 vaccine formula, but exclude India from the approved vaccination list of 18 countries. Indians are required to abide by the established rules for “unvaccinated” travelers.

Despite joining Covishield, Indian travelers still cannot be exempted from the quarantine regulations under the new international travel regulations that the UK will take effect on October 4. British officials in New Delhi insist that the main issue is vaccine certification rather than vaccines and India and the UK are holding Talks to resolve the matter together. According to British regulations, Indian travelers who have been vaccinated with two doses of Covishield vaccine produced by the Serological Institute of India (SII) will be considered unvaccinated and must self-quarantine for 10 days.

Although the traffic light system of red, amber and green countries based on the risk level of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom will be officially cancelled from October 4th, the upcoming rules will not actually change India’s current amber list status. Although Covishield is one of the main vaccines used in India and is an eligible formula in the UK, it does not provide any advantages for Indian travelers planning to visit the UK. Covishield and other eligible Indian vaccines will mean that self-isolation and pre-departure PCR testing are no longer required, as long as the vaccinated passengers book the next day of testing after arriving in England and fill out the mandatory passenger positioning form in advance.

News Source : Business Standard