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Business News/ Opinion / Views/  Broken into fragments by narrow vaccine walls
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Broken into fragments by narrow vaccine walls

CoWin certificates issued by India are still not held as valid vax passports by England. This is perplexing. Our fragmented world is in need of high-level talks on a global border accord

Photo: BloombergPremium
Photo: Bloomberg

News on Wednesday of England’s inclusion of Covishield, the Indian version of a vaccine developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca, in its list of covid jabs recognized by its border-control enforcers set off a brief flurry of internet activity in India. Cheers of triumph on social media and scans of flight options on travel sites, however, gave way to exclamations of various kinds upon the realization that self-isolation after landing was still a must. This was because our CoWin- issued digital certificates of vaccination were not held valid by London. Even people fully-vaccinated under our official system would therefore be clubbed with the world’s unvaxxed once England adopts ‘vax passports’ for hassle-free entry, as scheduled for 4 October onwards. Effectively, British barriers will be no lower for Indians than they were earlier this week, when we found that people jabbed in several other countries would be granted privileged access. As Mint’s Quick Edit on Tuesday titled ‘Don’t vax arrogant’ observed, this exposed England’s policy to charges of discrimination unless it had a scientific rationale. So, did it? We still don’t know. India held out a threat of reciprocal action amid a burst of indignation, the UK cited technical hitches for the decision, and news followed of bilateral efforts to sort out the matter. But the manner in which all this has unfolded is not a good sign of the shape the world is in.

How fair or unfair the policies of others are has been no dampener of the exuberance with which plans for foreign holidays have been plotted. Reports of America’s readiness to let in fully-vaxxed visitors this November have acted as a mood-uplifter for would-be holidayers who yearn to get away from home—and go as far as their means will take them. A recent dipstick survey on consumption by Deloitte found that more than half its respondents in India planned a leisure trip overseas. Another study by MakeMyTrip found 65% of its traveller sample actively searching for international flights and hotels. A third had their sights on the UK as a destination. For linguistic comfort, Anglophone countries offer ideal vacation spots, and the UK is closer than the US. This is not just on account of geography, but history as well. Our colonial experience may have faded over the generations, but, as this week’s flap over entry rules has shown, sensitivities to how we are designated by the British remain raw. It’s a 10-day quarantine that we must adhere to, with a fine of up to £10,000 for any violation. This ruins the allure of a short escape to London.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday called for “mutual recognition" of vax certificates. A conciliatory statement by the UK’s High Commissioner Alex Ellis suggested that its CoWin-okaying process was moving rapidly, while the National Health Authority that runs our website said the two sides were engaged in resolving the issue. Data security and sharing between the UK’s Covid Pass and our CoWin are expected to be under discussion. This should have happened far earlier, however. England has been keen to set the record straight on its reasoning, but has not acquitted itself yet. Its stated rationale offered no specifics that could explain the delay. Was London, perchance, suspicious of fake certification? What evaluation yardsticks were in use? In a world beset with confusion, we urgently need multilateral talks for a global pact on the safe movement of people across borders. Being locked in for so long has caused enough exasperation.

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Published: 23 Sep 2021, 09:38 PM IST
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