Virus variants area – Germany limits entry from India from Monday

Government departments said on Saturday that a blanket ban on people who previously resided in India will then be placed in the Federal Republic. There are exceptions, for example, for Germans and foreigners who have the right to reside in Germany. However, a negative result of the Corona test must be shown before entering the country and entering quarantine after arrival.

“In order not to jeopardize our vaccination campaign, travel to India must be severely restricted,” German Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) said in the Funk Media Group newspapers on Saturday. The federal government is also considering temporarily halting air traffic with India. As it was said in government departments, the decision was prepared in the Federal Ministry of Transport a few days ago. The issue is not only direct flights, but also flights through airports in the Gulf and the Bosphorus. She added that nothing had been decided in this regard.

Previously, German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) was said to have stepped in and called for caution – after India was classified as a high-risk region, but not yet as a variable region for the virus, according to a similar assessment by the Robert Koch Institute. (RKI).

The rules for virus-altering regions are stricter: participants must remain in quarantine for 14 days without the possibility of shortening the time. Additionally, airlines are not permitted to carry certain groups of people from these areas. This usually means that fewer flights are offered.

Indian variant B.1.617 is being monitored by the World Health Organization (WHO). This alternative has hardly occurred in Germany so far. As of Friday, 25 cases were to be confirmed nationwide. South Africa and Brazil, among other countries, are currently classified as variable regions of the virus, with various types of coronavirus classified as being of concern circulating.

In light of the tragic situation in India, the President of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber (CSU), called for the immediate suspension of all flights to the European Union. The CSU politician warned: “The Indian dual alternative appears to be spreading rapidly, and the situation there is threatening to spiral out of control.” In Bild, Weber noted that Canada and Great Britain have already taken appropriate steps. In general, European Union countries should “become better and faster in coordinated action due to the dynamics of the Coronavirus pandemic”. The chief medical officer of the world Frank Ulrich Montgomery also spoke in favor of preventive measures against the Indian Corona variant.

In Austria, there is currently a landing ban for aircraft from South Africa and Brazil. These are valid until May 2. There is no such ban on flights from India. According to the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, travel warnings currently apply to almost all countries of the world. The exceptions are Australia, Iceland, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the Vatican. However, Vienna’s Foreign Ministry continues to advise against all non-essential travel – including to these countries. The new Indian virus variant was not detected in Austria until Friday.

Meanwhile, the Corona situation in India has worsened. On Saturday, a new high was reached with 2,624 deaths within 24 hours. The central government has attempted to provide hospitals completely overloaded with supplemental oxygen for artificial ventilation for Covid-19 patients. In addition, the authorities have reported more than 340,000 new cases of corona.

Meanwhile, Iran announced an entry ban from India. This is to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, a double mutant. President Hassan Rouhani said on television, “The Indian virus is more dangerous than the English and Brazilian versions.”