Bharat Biotech's Covaxin received first foreign recognition with Estonia confirming on Thursday that Indians inoculated with the anti-Covid-19 vaccine would be allowed to enter the North European nation.
Seven other European Union (EU) nations – Austria, Germany, Slovenia, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Spain – earlier agreed to allow Indian travellers to enter the respective countries without subjecting them to mandatory quarantine or any other restrictions if they were inoculated with Covishield before arrival. Switzerland too waived travel restrictions for Indians who received both doses of the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University and manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII).
The Embassy of Estonia in New Delhi in fact stated that the Indian citizens would be allowed to enter the tiny nation if they arrive with vaccination certificates issued by the Government of India.
The Covaxin – the only indigenously developed Made-in-India vaccine – has not yet been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) or the European Medicines Agency (EMA) or the health authorities of any foreign nation. It is however one of the four anti-Covid-19 vaccines approved for inoculation programme in India, the other being Covishield, Sputnik V of Gamaleya Research Institute of Russia and Spikevax (mRNA 1273) of Moderna.
Estonia, like many other EU nations, currently allows only fully vaccinated foreigners to travel to the country. The Embassy of Estonia in New Delhi stated that it had only been issuing a limited number of visas in view of the prevailing Covid-19 situation.
New Delhi on Wednesday subtly warned of retaliatory action if any Indian inoculated with Covaxin or Covishield is placed in quarantine or subjected to other travel restrictions while visiting any EU nation. India asked the EU member nations to individually exempt its citizens inoculated with Covaxin or Covishield from travel restrictions even though the two anti-Covid-19 vaccines are not among the ones approved by the bloc for its “Green Pass” – formally known as the EU Digital Covid Certificate – programme that came into effect on Thursday.
The “Green Pass” is a proof in digital format or on paper that a person has either been vaccinated against the Covid-19, or tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 infection or recovered from infection.
The certificate will be issued to the citizens of any EU nation if they were inoculated with vaccines authorised by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). Any person having the certificate will be exempted from travel restrictions within the EU. The individual EU member states, however, can also extend the same benefit to people who were administered vaccines authorised by respective national health authorities or by the WHO.