Scope of Vaccine Tourism in India

There are lots of people who love to travel to other parts of the world. Some travel for pleasure and some for business purposes. But there is a big portion of people who travel for medicinal purposes. People go to countries like India where it is cheap yet world-class treatments are available. More than 600,000 people from all over the world visit India for medical purposes. But when we say “Vaccine Tourism” for a COVID-19, it is a very different kind of tourism. This kind of tourism involves the vaccination process.

After the first deadly strike of Wuhan Covid-19, the tourism sector endured the most damage. All kind of tourism was forcefully paused in the whole world. Even at the time of writing, all kind of tourism is suspended. But there are some reports that a few countries are opening up for vaccine tourism, is India among them? We will discuss this matter at great length in the article.

What Is Vaccine Tourism And Is It legal For Indians?

The concept of vaccine tourism is not run by the government. But instead, it is run by travel agencies around the world. What the travel agency does is that they will allow you to book a package tour. These packages involve some country where there is a vaccine available in abundance and you can go get it. Since the government does not claim any responsibility to give you a vaccine without fail. This makes it neither legal nor illegal. As long as you are not entering the country illegally or by breaking Covid-19 norms you are doing it legally. Whether you get the vaccine shot or not depends on you. Neither the government nor the travel agency will guarantee you the vaccine shot.

Is vaccine Tourism Possible in India?

As you might already know that India is short on vaccines. The vaccine manufacturing companies are barely keeping up with the vast 1.3 Billion (Expected to be 1.4B) people of India. In this kind of situation Indians at the heart may ask questions like- Is it possible for me to go abroad and get vaccinated? Is vaccine tourism possible for us?

Well, the answer to these questions can not be given in simple Yes or No. it is much more complicated than that. The Union Tourism Minister of India, Mr Prahlad Patel answered this question in an interview, he said, “There may be no need for anyone from India to go abroad for vaccination. Since all eligible Indians will be vaccinated in the country by the end of this year that too, at the most reasonable rates possible.”

Despite these bold claims, the idea of vaccine tourism is gaining popularity in India. Many Indians were seen leaving for UAE and the USA just before the international flight ban. They fled and got vaccinated with the Chinese vaccine Sinopharm’s shots and Pfizer shots in the UAE and USA respectively. 

Book A Vaccine Tour From India

Many tour companies give us the option to travel abroad and get vaccinated. Although they do not guarantee the vaccine shots. Instead, they will take responsibilities such as air travel, road travel, food and lodging. One of these tour companies was interviewed recently. They claimed that they will provide you with a valid 10 years Visa for the USA. Not only just that but they will also give you a 4-day trip. This trip will originate from Mumbai City to New York City.

This trip will include a coronavirus shot in the USA. You must be wondering about the cost of this luxurious tour? let us tell you it’s not cheap as you might think. They mentioned the price to be somewhere near $2000 per person. After this interview, several other tour companies started to pop up. They all started offering similar packages in India for countries like the USA, UK and Russia.

Are These Travel Agencies Legit?

Many Indians were intrigued by the claims made by many travel agencies. That is why they started sending emails and calls to inquire about the tour package. By gaining such popularity overnight, the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) had to respond. They responded and cleared things out for the citizens of India. Ms Jyoti Mayal the president of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), said, “Unless we hear from the Indian or the UK government, nobody should be offering tours like these,”. She also added that “Travel agents can also get dragged into legal suits. If they are caught making offers that are not authentic or yet to be approved by local governments.”

In simpler words, the government of countries like the USA, UK, Russia and India has not made any announcement. That involves vaccine tourism and its legality in the state. After you reach your destination, it will be very hard and uncertain that you will be able to get vaccinated.

Final verdict

The scope of Indians being able to go abroad and get vaccinated seems grim at the moment. But as the situation stands, the availability of vaccines is getting sedated. This is due to many reasons such as big population, production power, lack of raw materials, etc. That is why it will take time for Indians to get vaccinated. Which will lead to the promotion of vaccine tourism in India. So the Future of vaccine tourism in India is very bright. 

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