On Thursday, the CEO of Serum Institute of India (SII), Adar Poonawalla, announced on microblogging site Twitter that he would offer a financial assistance of ₹10 crore to Indian students travelling abroad.
Dear students travelling abroad, as a few countries are yet to approve COVISHIELD as an acceptable vaccine for travel without quarantine, you may have to incur some costs. I have set aside Rs.10 crores for this, apply below for financial support if needed. https://t.co/CbD6IsdKol
— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) August 5, 2021
As several countries are yet to approve the SII-manufactured Covishield vaccine, the amount will be used to cover the additional costs of students while arriving in such countries.
The announcement comes after the news of the UK reviewing its three-tier international travel restrictions with a list of colour-coded nations categorized as red, amber and green.
The UK Transport Secretary had stated, “The UAE, Qatar, India and Bahrain will be moved from the red list to the amber list. All changes come into effect Sun 8th August at 4 am.”
He added, “I remain fully committed to helping Indian students’ quarantine in the United Kingdom on arrival for their higher studies. The new Amber List rules make it clear that Indian students will still need to quarantine, albeit at a place of their choosing. They may, therefore, still incur substantial costs I have made a personal contribution of ₹10 crore (£1 million).
Meanwhile, India’s Bharat Biotech COVID-19 vaccine known as Covaxin has not yet received an emergency listing from WHO. The company informed, “Bharat Biotech intends to submit documentation for emergency use authorization in several additional countries worldwide.”