UK govt raises doubts on CoWin certification process, no issues with Covishield vaccine

Under new British rules unveiled last week, Indians who have received two shots of the Covishield jab will be treated as unvaccinated and have to quarantine themselves for 10 days, even though the vaccine is the same as the AstraZeneca vaccine developed by Oxford University but manufactured in India and in use many Western countries like Canada.

The vaccine, Covishield, is a licensed product of the UK manufacturer and about five million doses have been supplied at the request of the UK Government as part of the National Health System.

The United Kingdom’s decision to impose new Covid-related travel restrictions for Indians despite easing their rules is not because of which vaccines are being used, but the certification process on the CoWin website, according to a report by ThePrint.

As per sources there were no technical issues with Covishield vaccine, the UK government has raised doubts on the CoWin certification process. Technical-level talks are currently underway on this matter.

The UK is also facing issues with India in terms of obtaining ordinary tourist visas due to stringent Covid-related rules. The UK believes once it approves the certification process, a large number of Indians would want to travel to that country.

India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has raised with the UK Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss her country's rules that require vaccinated Indian travellers to be quarantined and urged an early resolution of the issue.

"Urged early resolution of quarantine issue in mutual interest," he tweeted after meeting Truss in New York on Monday as he began holding bilateral meetings with leaders from around the world.