Pakistan eases travel restrictions on India
Staff Reporter Islamabad
The National Command and Operation Centre in collaboration with the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) has launched ‘Pak Covid-19 Vaccination Pass App’.
The application has been developed to facilitate the people to carry their digital Covid-19 vaccination certificate.
The app allows the users to download the Covid vaccination certificate issued through Nadra and save it on the phone.
The digital certificate is official proof of Covid-19 vaccination, which is required for domestic and international travelling.
Using the QR Code, the digital certificate can be verified instantaneously. The NCOC earlier this week announced that complete Covid-19 vaccination certificates would become mandatory for air travel after September 10.
Meanwhile, National Command and Operation Centre has removed India from the list of Category-C countries, after a significant decline in number of coronavirus cases in the neighbouring country.
A devastating rise in infections in April and May, driven largely by the more infectious and dangerous Delta variant, overwhelmed the healthcare system in India and killed at least 170,000 people in May alone.
The situation prompted many countries including Pakistan to impose travel restrictions on the second-most Covid-19 affected country across the globe. However, the situation has considerably improved over the past couple of months.
The NCOC reviewed the Covid-19 situation around the world during a meeting on Saturday. The forum decided to keep Bangladesh, Ecuador, Guatemala, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, South Africa, Thailand and Tunisia in the list of Category-C countries but decided to remove India from it.
The NCOC said that passengers arriving from countries of any category would have to follow the testing protocols set by the Pakistani authorities. It said that Pakistanis travelling to Category-C countries for a short period can return to the country without any hindrance.“
All countries, except the countries in Category-C, have been placed in Category-B,” it added. NCOC further said that the new policy will be implemented with immediate effect and it will be reviewed on Sept 15.
