Maldives issues travel advisory for Indian tourists amid COVID-19 surge
What's the story
Maldives, the South Asian island nation popular among rich Indians and film stars for holidaying, has issued a travel advisory for Indians, barring them from staying at tourist facilities in such islands that are inhabited by the locals.
The decision has been taken in view of the worsening COVID-19 situation in India.
Here are more details on this.
Details
The order will be in force from April 27
Notably, the order only limits Indians to staying at Maldives' remote islands.
The announcement was made by the island nation's Ministry of Tourism.
"With effect from 27 April @HPA_mv suspends tourists travelling from #India to #Maldives from staying at tourist facilities in inhabited islands. We thank you for the support in our endeavour to make tourism safest possible with minimum inconvenience," it tweeted yesterday.
Twitter Post
You can view the tweet here
With effect from 27 April @HPA_mv suspends tourists travelling from #India to #Maldives from staying at tourist facilities in inhabited islands. We thank you for the support in our endeavour to make tourism safest possible with minimum inconvenience.
— Ministry of Tourism (@MoTmv) April 25, 2021
History
Maldives is a favorite tourist spot for Indians
Maldives is among the few countries that have opened doors for tourists since the COVID-19 pandemic began and travel restrictions were imposed.
In fact, many Bollywood stars have flown down to the island nation in recent months and posted glamorous pictures on their social media accounts.
They also received criticism from some corners for flaunting their privilege during an unprecedented health and economic crisis.
Other countries
UK, Canada, other countries ban flights from India
Maldives has joined an increasingly long list of countries that have imposed travel bans and restrictions on flights coming from India.
They include United Kingdom, Canada, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates (UAE), New Zealand, and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended people to avoid traveling to India even if they are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Situation
The worsening COVID-19 situation in India
India is currently in the middle of an unprecedented second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, reporting lakhs of infections and hundreds of deaths daily amid an overburdened health infrastructure.
In the last 24 hours, the country reported over 3.5 lakh new cases - the highest single-day surge for any country.
2,812 more fatalities took the death toll past 1.95 lakh.