Following a massive backlash from India over its “racist” and "discriminatory" travel restrictions, the United Kingdom (UK) finally recognised Covishield in its list of approved COVID-19 vaccines on Wednesday, 22 September.

The new travel policy in the UK, which is set to kick in from 4 October, had left many Indians confused as it required even the fully vaccinated travellers to undergo COVID-19 tests before departure and after arrival, and a mandatory 10-day quarantine when they land in the UK.

What further infuriated people was the fact that the rules were different for other travellers who have been inoculated with vaccines such as Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson.


Pertinently, what is puzzling about the refusal was that Vaxzevria, the UK version of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, which is branded as Covishield in India, are the same vaccine, to the extent where India even exported 5 million doses of Covishield to UK to help with their vaccine rollout earlier this year.


But even though the UK government has now recognised Covishield, according to the new rules, there is no respite to Indian travellers since they would still have to undergo all the COVID-19 tests and even the 10-day quarantine.

So what is making the UK government refuse the authenticity of the Indian shot? What are their concerns? And what steps can the union government take to rectify this issue?

To understand this, for today’s episode we spoke with health journalist Divya Rajagopal and former Indian ambassador Anil Tringunayat. Tune in!

Host and Producer: Himmat ShaligramGuest: Divya Rajagopal, senior health journalist and former Indian ambassador Anil Tringunayat.

Editor: Shelly Walia
Music: Big Bang Fuzz
Listen to The Big Story podcast on:
Apple: https://apple.co/2AYdLIlSaavn: http://bit.ly/2oix78CGoogle Podcasts: http://bit.ly/2ntMV7SSpotify: https://spoti.fi/2IyLAUQDeezer: http://bit.ly/2Vrf5NgCastbox: http://bit.ly/2VqZ9ur

<div>Following a massive backlash from India over its “racist” and "discriminatory" travel restrictions, the United Kingdom (UK) finally recognised Covishield in its list of approved COVID-19 vaccines on Wednesday, 22 September.<br>
<br>

</div>
<div>The new travel policy in the UK, which is set to kick in from 4 October, had left many Indians confused as it required even the fully vaccinated travellers to undergo COVID-19 tests before departure and after arrival, and a mandatory 10-day quarantine when they land in the UK.<br>
<br>

</div>
<div>What further infuriated people was the fact that the rules were different for other travellers who have been inoculated with vaccines such as Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson and Johnson.<br>
<br>
Pertinently, what is puzzling about the refusal was that Vaxzevria, the UK version of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, which is branded as Covishield in India, are the same vaccine, to the extent where India even exported 5 million doses of Covishield to UK to help with their vaccine rollout earlier this year.<br>
<br>
But even though the UK government has now recognised Covishield, according to the new rules, there is no respite to Indian travellers since they would still have to undergo all the COVID-19 tests and even the 10-day quarantine.<br>
<br>

</div>
<div>So what is making the UK government refuse the authenticity of the Indian shot? What are their concerns? And what steps can the union government take to rectify this issue?<br>
<br>

</div>
<div>To understand this, for today’s episode we spoke with health journalist Divya Rajagopal and former Indian ambassador Anil Tringunayat. Tune in!<br>
<br>
<strong>Host and Producer: </strong>Himmat Shaligram</div>
<div>
<strong>Guest: </strong>Divya Rajagopal, senior health journalist and former Indian ambassador Anil Tringunayat.<br>
<br>

</div>
<div>
<strong>Editor:</strong> Shelly Walia</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>
<strong>Music:</strong> Big Bang Fuzz</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div><strong>Listen to The Big Story podcast on:</strong></div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>Apple: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=https%3A%2F%2Fapple.co%2F2AYdLIl&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">https://apple.co/2AYdLIl</a>
</div>
<div>Saavn: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F2oix78C&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">http://bit.ly/2oix78C</a>
</div>
<div>Google Podcasts: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F2ntMV7S&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">http://bit.ly/2ntMV7S</a>
</div>
<div>Spotify: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=https%3A%2F%2Fspoti.fi%2F2IyLAUQ&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">https://spoti.fi/2IyLAUQ</a>
</div>
<div>Deezer: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?q=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2F2Vrf5Ng&amp;redir_token=G9sQMbbppKv-LEFD29gDyTmPMzt8MTU3MTM4MDU5NkAxNTcxMjk0MTk2&amp;v=xkpX1V6aUFo&amp;event=video_description">http://bit.ly/2Vrf5Ng</a>
</div>
<div>Castbox: <a href="http://bit.ly/2VqZ9ur">http://bit.ly/2VqZ9ur</a>
</div>
<div><br>
</div>

The Big Story is back with a second season!

The news culture of our times is noisy, crowded, and honestly so confusing. This is why we are coming every fortnight on your podcast platforms to help you make sense of the new and now. 

With two new hosts, Anjali and Prateek, the second season of The Big Story will feature longer and well-rounded discussions with experts across science, culture, technology, politics, and more. Tune in on your preferred podcast platform!   



Millions of listeners seek out Bingepods (Ideabrew Studios Network content) every day. Get in touch with us to advertise, join the network or click listen to  enjoy content by some of India's top audio creators.
studio@ideabrews.com

Android | Apple

<p>The Big Story is back with a second season!</p>
<p>The news culture of our times is noisy, crowded, and honestly so confusing. This is why we are coming every fortnight on your podcast platforms to help you make sense of the new and now. <br aria-hidden="true"><br aria-hidden="true">With two new hosts, Anjali and Prateek, the second season of The Big Story will feature longer and well-rounded discussions with experts across science, culture, technology, politics, and more. Tune in on your preferred podcast platform!   </p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>Millions of listeners seek out <a href="https://bingepods.com/">Bingepods</a> (Ideabrew Studios Network content) every day. Get in touch with us to advertise, join the network or click listen to  enjoy content by some of India's top audio creators.</em><br><em><a href="mailto:studio@ideabrews.com">studio@ideabrews.com</a></em></p>
<p><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bingepods.app">Android</a> | <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/bingepods/id1637568609">Apple</a></p>

Advertisement