London: Indians who have got Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin to avoid the coronavirus will soon be able to easily go to the UK. The UK government is now going to include Covaccine in the list of approved Covid-19 vaccines for international travelers. From November 22, passengers who got the Bharat Biotech-made vaccine will no longer have to go to England and stay in Quarantine. This move of the UK government follows the World Health Organization (WHO) list of emergency use.
Covaccine is the second-largest vaccine used in India. Earlier, international travelers who had been vaccinated had to stay in quarantine after going to the UK, but from 22 November this will no longer happen. Apart from this, Covishield, the India-made Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine was added to the UK-approved list only last month. International travel has increased due to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) emergency use approval (EUA) for the vaccine.
British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis tweeted on Monday saying, ‘There is more good news for Indian travelers in the UK. From November 22, passengers who have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, will no longer need to be in quarantine. So join those who are fully vaccinated with Covishield.
Earlier, on November 3, in the meeting of the Technical Advisory Group of the WHO, the vaccine was included in the emergency listing. Bharat Biotech applied for EUL from WHO in the month of July and the process started. Phase 3 clinical trial data of Covaccine was available during June 2021. The World Health Organization’s Emergency Use List (EUL) process began on July 6, 2021, with rolling data submissions.
The WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) reviewed the Covaxin data in a meeting on 5 October and approved the EUL for the vaccine on 3 November.
