PremiumA joint team from several ministries and stakeholders, including the health department, are in discussion to take a final decision on allowing domestic air travel without a negative RT-PCR report for those who have received both doses of Covid vaccine, says civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri
NEW DELHI : The Modi government is planning a mechanism to enable hassle-free domestic air travel and to do away with the mandatory RT-PCR report for those passengers who have received both shots of a Covid-19 vaccine amid significant fall in daily active cases across the nation.
Minister of Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri has said a joint team from several ministries and stakeholders, including the health department, are in discussion to take a final decision on allowing travelling by air without an RT-PCR test for those who have received both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, news agency ANI reported.
The minister said the decision will be taken by the civil aviation ministry along with several nodal agencies including health experts who are working with the government to safeguard the interests of passengers.
At present, domestic passengers are mandatorily asked to produce RT-PCR report for travelling to other states.
The civil aviation minister said "health is a state subject, and to ask passengers for a negative RT-PCR report before they enter a state is solely the right of that particular state."
The minister further said the Indian government has raised objections against the concept of 'vaccine passport' for international passengers and has termed it as 'discriminatory'.
The minister said the Indian Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has told the G7 countries that with vaccine coverage as a percentage of population in developing countries is still low compared to developed countries, such an initiative could prove to be highly discriminatory.
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