Dear students, remember in my earlier write-up I had guided you about how to choose the best overseas visa consultant and I had said that the UK is a great choice for overseas education because of the relaxed norms regarding the work permit (PSW)
No doubt, the pandemic is yet not over but the intensity of its spread is under control. Life has to return to normal and hence many countries have started relaxing the norms for international students. Today I wish to share two very GOOD NEWS with you people.
To brief you, I am Rishi Mehta from Edge International and I have my visa consultancy firm that guides the students in obtaining visas for the UK and other destinations. I work as a study abroad consultant. It is not just a visa consultancy firm but Edge International is a manifestation of my dream where I wish to help students to fulfill all their education dreams. I work as an international overseas consultant for the last 12 years now.
Don’t get me wrong but I am an Indian at heart and that is why I was frustrated with the way Britain was treating Indian students. Remember we were slaves of Britain in earlier times too! Although the UK has a world-class education this was truly indigestible.
I can imagine the plight of Indian students who wish to study abroad and many times they apply for loans, mortgage their properties, or apply for scholarships. I know how hard it is for the parents to arrange for the money to show the bank balance. Let me tell you how we faced discrimination in this regard earlier and how it has been removed now.
The UK has bifurcated the international students coming from different countries depending on the different zones like the red zone, amber zone, and green zone. They listed different countries in it. Until this time it was ok. As we were facing the second wave of Covid, we were on the ‘red list’ of countries.
The real discrimination started when India moved into the ‘Amber list’ and our students had to do a covid test 3 days before their arrival in the UK and even after landing there, all at their cost. They were subjected to a compulsory quarantine of 10 days in the hotels suggested by the UK government.
The story does not end here. In some hotels, vegetarian food was not served to the students. They were not allowed to go out. Even if they went out, it was just for 10 minutes with prior permission and with the security guards.
During the compulsory quarantine period, they had to do a covid test on day 2 and day 8 after the arrival. To add to our woes, there were different rules for different nations. The discriminatory rules were different for EU unions and us.
The students from the EU union were not forced to a compulsory quarantine after arriving in the UK even if they took the same vaccine as us whereas even if we Indians took both the doses of the Covishield vaccine, we were forced to a compulsory quarantine of 10 days in the hotels of their choice. I call this ‘vaccine racism’. This added an extra financial burden of 1750 pounds ie around Rs1,88,000 on our students without any reason even if:
-They tested negative for covid
-They had taken both the doses of Covishield vaccine.
This was a financial and emotional trauma for students. I call it a ‘tax on the passion to study.
We were already raising these issues with the government and finally, we moved to the ‘Amber list’ of countries. Accordingly, if you land in the UK as a student after 8th August 2021, 4 AM you will have to follow the following rules which are much easier to follow compared to the earlier ones. Accordingly, you need to,
- Take a covid test 3 days before the travel to the UK
- Book and pay for the covid test post-arrival in England.
- Complete the passenger locator form
- Quarantine for 10 days at home or as per your convenience and no need to go to a government-managed hotel. It is a non-institutional quarantine for 10 days.
- Get the covid test done on the 2nd day and the 8th day after arrival in England.
I know some of you might be thinking that what’s the good news here because you still need to pay for the covid tests when you arrive in Britain. Calm down a while and think. You will lower the costs on your ‘FORCED STAY’ in hotels suggested by them. This will drastically reduce the costs.
Another good thing is that many universities have relaxed their norms to cover the testing and 10-days compulsory quarantine fee. I have covered it in my earlier blog titled “UK STUDENT VISA aspirants – Get ready to fly GOOD NEWS”
You are our future generation and we cannot see you compromise your dreams for the sake of money. You must be knowing that in India, Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute of India took the plunge to administer the vaccines.
The UK denying the recognition of the Covishield vaccine was a big insult to India although it allowed a similar vaccine to the EU union. As a result of it Mr Adar Poonawala, the CEO of Serum Institute offered a grant of 10 crores personally to all students who wish to go to the UK for study. All this help is not sponsored by the Serum Institute and he has done it in his capacity. Source- Twitter
Depending on whether a student has applied for a loan or scholarship for study in the UK, he/she will be eligible for monetary help.
KETTO is the agency that is going to collect the funds and raise donations for this purpose in addition to the 10 crores already donated by Mr. Adar Poonawala and SANMAT is the agency responsible for disbursing the amount among the students.
On this Sunday, i.e. 8th August 2021, NDTV is going to host a special program for the benefit of the students. You can watch it live on YouTube. I will be there to share my views with you through blogs but then if you wish you can always log on to NDTV for the updates. Use #unlockeducation for all your queries/searches.
I sincerely hope that all your prayers be answered by God and may you be able to fulfill all your career aspirations. For any help regarding overseas education, you can always approach me at Edge International.
All the Best!
