India, Oct 2 (The Hindu) – India on Friday imposed reciprocal quarantine measures on citizens of the United Kingdom. Sources said the new regulations will enforce a 10-day quarantine on all British nationals in the way that the UK currently enforces similar quarantine measures on fully vaccinated Indian nationals.
The new measures will come into effect from October 4, indicating that India-UK negotiations over the latter’s 10-day mandatory quarantine requirement have broken down.
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According to the new regulations, all British nationals arriving in India from the UK, irrespective of their vaccination status, will have to undertake, pre-departure COVID-19 RT-PCR test within 72 hours before travel, followed by similar tests upon arrival at the Indian airport which is to be followed by another RTPCR test on the 8th day after arrival in India.
That apart, the British travellers to India will have to be in “mandatory quarantine at home or in the destination address for 10 days after arrival in India”.
The deepening dispute regarding vaccination certificates and the quarantine period has cast a shadow on expected high level visits from London to India.
Sources explained that the move will not affect the Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) staying in the UK with permits but is likely to affect PIOs and OCI-card holders as they may be citizens of the UK.
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The new measures have been imposed though there is no tourist traffic from the UK to India at the moment as New Delhi has not resumed issuing tourist visas. However, it is understood that the Indian move is being perceived as “unexpected” by the British side which had witnessed some “positive progress” in the dialogue over relaxing the UK’s quarantine requirement for Indian citizens. Informed Indian sources have, however, told The Hindu that the UK can make the necessary adjustments in its policy by October 4.
The Indian announcement comes days after the UK recognised Covishield vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India but retained the 10-day quarantine period for fully vaccinated travellers from India, which intensified the rift between the two sides. The UK had moved India from the ‘Red List’ to the ‘Amber List’ on August 8 reopening tourist visas for Indian travellers but maintained that the 10-day quarantine period would remain in place.
British sources had earlier said that there were no issues related to the Covishield vaccine but there are “technical difficulties” that were preventing the UK from connecting with the Indian side which is a requirement for verifying vaccination certificates.
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