Students headed to Europe in a fix after getting Covaxin shot

Students headed to Europe in a fix after getting Covaxin shot

• By Staff Writer

Indian students who have been vaccinated with Bharat Biotech's Covaxin are concerned about whether the lack of approval for the India-made vaccine in Europe will impact their study plans.

Several students have been in touch with the ministry of external affairs and have also written to the company, asking it to clarify the status of its vaccine abroad.

They have asked the company if it has applied to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for approval for Covaxin so that it can be included in the list of vaccines that must be accepted by the EU's "Green Pass".

The Green Pass, which launched on July 1, is intended to facilitate quarantine-free travel between EU states for holders and is issued to fully vaccinated travelers. Nine European nations, including Germany, have said that they will add Covishield to the list of vaccines accepted by "Green Passes.", and Estonia will add Covaxin as well.

However, at the moment, only Switzerland and Iceland are allowing travel from India. Germany has barred all travel from India, including that of students, since April 26, when it designated India a "country with a significantly elevated risk of infection (virus variant area)."

"Everyone is talking about Covishield and there's no clarity on the approval to Covaxin," said Ashutosh Mahajan from Dhule in Maharashtra, one of the students who has written to Bharat Biotech. Mahajan, a student at the University of Koblenz-Landau in Germany, said he is facing huge financial and mental stress due to the uncertainty over Covaxin's approval. Sagnik Dutta, another student heading to Germany this year, says "I have to join my classes in October this year. I have taken a student loan and paid a semester fee supported with the block amount. It is still not clear whether Covaxin will be cleared or not."

The Indian government has said it will press the EU to include Covishield and Covaxin in the list of vaccines that qualify for the vaccine passports. However, the uncertainty over Covaxin continues since it is not yet approved by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Students say they are yet to get clarity from the government on this issue. "The MEA has collected our contact details but nothing more. We have been waiting," said Jyoti Gulati (name changed), a student enrolled at a university in Belgium.

An email sent to Bharat Biotech did not elicit any response.

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