London: The United Kingdom has revised its travel policy which looks forward to include Covishield as an approved vaccine after India raised strong objections.
The updated UK guidelines say, “Formulations of the four listed vaccines, such as AstraZeneca Covishield, AstraZeneca Vaxzevria and Modern Takeda, qualify as approved vaccines.”
This proposes that Indians vaccinated with two doses of Covishield will still need to quarantine even though India is now on the Amber list. The implication is that the problem is not Covishield but doubts over vaccination certification in India.
This could raise fresh trouble after India warned of “reciprocal measures” if Covishield, the Indian version of the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine, was not recognized.
"The non-recognition of Covishield is a discriminatory policy and impacts our citizens travelling to the UK. The External Affairs Minister has raised the issue strongly with the new UK foreign secretary. I am told that certain assurances have been given that this issue will be resolved," Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla had told reporters yesterday.
Continue Reading
