New Zealand suspends entry for Indian travellers due to spike in COVID-19 cases

New Zealand Prime Minister on Thursday declared a temporary ban for the entry of passengers from India due to the rise in the COVID-19 cases in the country, according to the local media.

The ban has been imposed considering the current situation in New Zealand where from the 23 fresh COVID-19 cases reported, 17 of them in isolation declared on Thursday have been from India.

The ban for Indian commuters will be starting from Sunday and will continue till April 28, as revealed by New Zealand Herald. Till now, New Zealand has registered a count of 2,531 cases of the deadly virus.

The travellers from India had led the island nation to trigger risk assessment, Prime Minister Jacinda Arden stated the Government is noting down the risks posed by the COVID-19 hot spots based in other countries.

Arden said, “This is not a permanent arrangement but rather a temporary measure.” She further added that this temporary hold will aid in putting down the risk experienced by the travellers themselves.

Presently, India is observing a sudden surge in the COVID-19 cases and has recorded 1.28 crore cases. The total active cases in the country crossed over 8,43,000 and the daily positivity rate is having a stable rise.