On Saturday, Singapore declared removing India and five other South Asian countries from its travel restriction list as the island-state proceeds to settle border actions in response to the global COVID-19 situation. The health ministry said that all tourists with a 14-day travel history to Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka would be permitted to enter or transit via Singapore from 27th October onwards.
However, passengers from these nations will be constrained to the strictest of border measures, including a 10-day, stay-home notice period at a dedicated facility. The ministry stated in a release that it had examined the COVID-19 condition in the six South Asian countries it was earlier blocked off.
Addressing a virtual press conference, health minister Ong Ye Kung said the condition in these nations has steadied for some time. “There is no longer a need for strict rules that prevent travellers from these countries from landing here,” the Straits Times quoted Ong as saying.
The health ministry said developments that come into effect on Wednesday cover palliative measures for tourists from Singapore’s nearest neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Singapore is intending to allow completely vaccinated travellers from 15 more countries to enter without needing to quarantine in dedicated facilities. The countries include Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates, Bloomberg reported.
As of Friday, Singapore has recorded a total of 165,663 COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic. The virus has claimed 294 lives so far in the country.
