Twins barred from boarding flight to Singapore at KIA over vaccine rules: Report

Two 12-year-old brothers were denied boarding to a Singapore-bound flight because they had taken the Corbevax vaccine which is not yet approved for international travel, a report said.

Published on: Aug 5, 2022, 10:58:05 IST

By Yamini C S | Edited by Chandrashekar Srinivasan

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Two brothers heading to Singapore for a vacation were stopped from boarding their flight at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport last week due to Covid vaccine rules in that country. The brothers have been inoculated with the indigenously made Corbevax, which has not yet approved by Singapore.

The Corbevax vaccine, made by Biological E Limited, a Hyderabad-based firm, has not yet been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for international travel. (AFP Photo)

According to a report by The Times of India, Ronit and Ronav Agrawal (12) were set to travel with seven family members on a Singapore Airlines flight.

Unfortunately for them, Singapore does not yet recognise the vaccine; which is approved for use in India. The rest of the group was cleared for travel; the boys' parents and their younger brother chose to stay back while the others went on.

The Corbevax vaccine, made by Hyderabad-based Biological E Limited, has also not yet been approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The parents then booked a flight to Thailand instead, as they did not want to disappoint the children, and have asked for a refund from the airline.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Yamini C S
Yamini CS is a Senior Content Producer at Hindustan Times with nearly six years of experience in digital journalism. She is part of the India News desk, where she works on a wide range of stories cutting across civic issues, city-based developments, politics, governance, public policy, breaking news, trending topics, and international affairs that have an impact on India. Her role involves tracking fast-moving developments, verifying information from official and on-ground sources, and presenting news in a clear, accessible format for a digital-first audience. A significant part of her work includes handling live blogs during major news events, such as elections, court verdicts, political developments, civic disruptions, protests, weather-related alerts, and unfolding national or international incidents. Through live coverage, she focuses on timely updates to help readers follow complex stories as they evolve. Before moving to the broader India News desk, Yamini was associated with the Bengaluru desk at Hindustan Times, where she extensively covered urban governance, infrastructure, traffic and transport issues, weather events, public grievances, and civic administration in the city. This experience strengthened her grounding in city reporting and sharpened her focus on citizen-centric journalism. She began her career as a correspondent with Reuters after completing a postgraduate diploma in journalism from the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media. Her early training instilled a strong emphasis on accuracy, sourcing, and news ethics, which continue to shape her reporting style. Outside of work, Yamini enjoys reading across genres, listening to music, and spending time with her family, which help her maintain balance in a fast-paced newsroom environment.Read More

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