NEW DELHI: China has temporarily suspended the entry of foreign nationals into India to the country due to the Covid pandemic. The decision comes after nearly 20 passengers on an Air India (AI) Vande Bharat Mission (VBM) Delhi-Wuhan flight on October 30 tested positive upon arrival last week. AI had planned four flights to China between November 13 and December 4, which could now be affected.
“Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is hereby announced that China has decided to temporarily suspend the entry into China of foreign nationals in India holding valid Chinese visas or residence permits. The Chinese Embassy / Consulates in India will not stamp health declaration forms for holders of the aforementioned visa or residence permit categories, ”the Chinese Embassy in India said in a statement on its website on Thursday.
“Foreigners with China diplomatic, service, courtesy and C visas are not affected. Foreigners with humanitarian or emergency needs to visit China, can submit a visa application to the Chinese Embassy / Consulates in India. Entry into China with visas issued after November 3, 2020 is not affected, “he said, adding that” the suspension is a temporary measure that China has to take to deal with the current pandemic. China will make further adjustments and announce in accordance with the ongoing pandemic situation in a timely manner. ”
This decision comes three days after China issued new guidelines for airlines carrying passengers to the country. “To reduce the cross-border transmission of Covid-19, as of 00:00 (India time) on November 7, 2020, all Chinese and foreign passengers bound for China will be required to take nucleic acid and IgM antibody tests and request a green health code marked ‘HS’ or a certified health declaration form before boarding the flight ”, the notice of“ airline boarding requirements for certificates of negative results of nucleic acid tests and IgM antibodies ”issued on November 2.
“All passengers taking charter flights or special flights from India to China organized by the government of China or India, must undergo double nucleic acid tests and a Covid-19 IgM antibody test, in laboratories authorized by the Indian Council. of Medical Research (ICMR), with samples from the first nucleic acid test collected within 72 hours (3 days) prior to shipment, and samples from the second nucleic acid test and IgM antibody test collected within 36 hours before boarding, ”the November 2 notice had said.
“For passengers on charter flights or special flights from India, the certificates of negative results of the three tests mentioned together with the personally signed health declaration form will be sent through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of India to the embassy of China in India for verification and sealing at least 24 hours before shipment, “added the November 2 notice.
This decision came after AI’s VBM Delhi-Wuhan flight on Oct 30 with 277 passengers saw 19 tested positive for Covid upon arrival in the global pandemic hometown and another 40 were found to have Covid antibodies. . China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region suspends airlines for 14 days if five or more passengers on any flight test positive for the virus on arrival. Hong Kong has so far banned AI four times and Vistara once during the pandemic for this reason.
The Air India spokesperson had said: “All our passengers to Wuhan boarded the flight from Delhi with negative Covid reports from certified labs. AI strictly adheres to all security protocols established by regulatory bodies and conforms to the requirements of destination airports. It is not about passengers boarding any of our flights without valid negative Covid reports. ”
AI has operated six flights to China so far during the pandemic, with the first two being on January 31 and February 1 to fly back to Indians from Wuhan.
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