Avoid all travel to India: US to its citizens amid spike in COVID-19 cases

New Delhi, Apr 20: In a recent development, the United States has advised its citizens to avoid all travel to India, citing an alarming spike in coronavirus cases in the country.

According to reports, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the top medical body of the United States, has issued an advisory for the American citizens, saying that even fully vaccinated travellers may be at risk for getting and spreading variants.

"Amid a surge in COVID cases (in India), travellers should avoid all travel to India. Even fully vaccinated travellers may be at risk for getting & spreading variants and should avoid all travel to India. If you must travel to India, get fully vaccinated before travel," the CDC said.

On Monday, Britain imposed travel restrictions on India, banning all arrivals from India except for UK or Irish nationals.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said that India was being added to Britain's "red list" of countries in light of surging case numbers and the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant in India.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also called off a trip to India that was set for next week after already being postponed in January.

In a statement, the two governments said, "In the light of the current coronavirus situation, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will not be able to travel to India next week."

They said that Johnson and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would instead speak later this month "to agree and launch their ambitious plans for the future partnership between the UK and India".

"They will remain in regular contact beyond this, and look forward to meeting in person later this year."