‘Ugly Racism!’ The Internet Reacts To Covishield’s Exclusion From EU ‘Green Pass’ List

 If you haven’t heard about it already, the European Union (EU) ‘Green Pass’ plan that will be available from July 1 has left out the Covershield from its European Medicines Agency-approved vaccine list. Reportedly, travelers who are only vaccinated with Comirnaty (Pfizer/BioNTech), Moderna, Vaxzervria (AstraZeneca), Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) will be able to travel to European countries where member states have already started using EMA’s ‘Virtual Vaccine Passport’. But while AstraZeneca is approved, it’s Indian and domestic version Covishield produced by Serum Institute of India has been excluded. Needless to say, Indians, who have been vaccinated with Covishield, are facing problems in travelling to European countries. Even after it being integral to the COVAX alliance and approved by the World Health Organization.

SEE ALSO: Serum Institute To Sell Covishield Vaccines At Rs 400 Per Dose To State Governments And Rs 600 To Private Hospitals

The move has also enraged Twitter where netizens are calling it ‘ugly racism’. From Alia Bhatt’s mother and actress Soni Razdan to journalist Barkha Dutt, many feel the WHO should intervene in the ‘disgusting’ play of politics. See for yourself.

Frankly this is just ugly racism. Indian companies should stop manufacturing for countries that behave in this white supremacist fashion . https://t.co/jVyZ4ObFJb

— barkha dutt (@BDUTT) June 27, 2021

I don't understand why EU doesn't accept covishield, a vaccine used by low income/poor countries in Asia and Africa but accepts AstraZeneca when it is the same vaccine under different name. https://t.co/60ZDZDhqCt

— Sofiya 🧣 SAD, BEAUTIFUL & TRAGIC (@Cowboylikesofi) June 28, 2021

Capitalism at its height https://t.co/uc6tMJmLjl

— Arvind Upadhyay (@arvind88ptc) June 28, 2021

No EU Green Pass vaccine certificate to Covishield because it's not produced in GB or EU ? That's shocking & discriminatory. Just Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca & Janssen are on their list. So all from India, forget about travelling on a EU Vaxx Green Pass for a good while https://t.co/gan0b8qxPI

— Siddhartha Basu (@babubasu) June 27, 2021

Ugly truth of Vaccine Politics of west!#Vaccinated #VaccineForAll #VaccineEquityhttps://t.co/4ioFKvXrpk

— Unapologetic Bharat (@amitbirlan) June 28, 2021

Colonialism never ends, does it? Even the brown-vaccine wasn't spared. https://t.co/7YPsg0Bwz0

— Himanshu Zade (@himanshuzade) June 27, 2021

A self respecting govt would be outraged at such exclusion. This is not only idiotic, but also casts a shadow on quality of vaccine produced in India. But then.... https://t.co/wi4s4nvZfS

— Indic History (@IndicHistory) June 27, 2021

This is simply vaccine apartheid https://t.co/b6XPk1EBja

— Nishant Kumar (@NishantSKumar) June 27, 2021

Totally agree. This is nothing short of disgusting and I’m wondering what kind of politics has brought this on. The @WHO must intervene immediately. https://t.co/rshTZ9VQOz

— Soni Razdan (@Soni_Razdan) June 27, 2021

While that is that, according to The Wire Science, Serum Institute in Pune which is also supplying vaccines to low-income nations never applied to have the vaccine approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). Meanwhile, SII chief Adar Poonawalla has taken to Twitter to assure the angry masses that he is working to ‘resolve this matter soon, both with regulators and at a diplomatic level with countries.’

I realise that a lot of Indians who have taken COVISHIELD are facing issues with travel to the E.U., I assure everyone, I have taken this up at the highest levels and hope to resolve this matter soon, both with regulators and at a diplomatic level with countries.

— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) June 28, 2021

So, what do you think of the entire episode?  

Source: https://in.mashable.com/culture/23198/ugly-racism-the-internet-reacts-to-covishields-exclusion-from-eu-green-pass-list