According to the latest guidelines of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday, quarantine-free entry for fully vaccinated passengers from certain countries will be based on the principle of reciprocity, Indian news agency ANI has reported.
It also said that under the latest guidelines passengers from 82 countries which include Sweden, Switzerland, Sri Lanka, Spain, US, Turkey, UK. Thailand, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Qatar, Canada, Bangladesh, Oman and Australia among others will only need to show proof of vaccination.
The requirement of compulsory on-arrival testing for passengers from certain countries identified as “at-risk” will also be removed, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya tweeted on Thursday.
“The ‘at-risk’ tag for countries has also been removed. Accordingly, the need for giving samples on port of arrival and waiting till the result is obtained from countries ‘at-risk’ is dispensed with,” his tweet added.
He added that the need for undertaking RT-PCR test on 8th day and uploading the same on Air Suvidha portal will also be discontinued.
A passenger travelling to India will have to upload a self-declaration form along with either a negative report or a certificate of completion of full vaccination.
The tourism industry estimates that Covid-19 has led to a loss of ₹150 lakh crore since March 2020. Before travel restrictions were imposed due to Covid-19 globally, India would witness 1.1 crore inbound tourists and 2.7 crore outbound tourists per annum, which is now down to a trickle though latest government figures are not available.
The @MoHFW_INDIA has issued revised guidelines for International Arrivals ✈️
Guidelines to come in effect from 14th February.
Follow these diligently, stay safe & strengthen India's hands in the fight against #COVID19.
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