Some international students inhibited by travel complications as Fall semester approaches
Heading back to school can be an exciting time for many students, but changes in travel restrictions due to COVID-19 may mean missing the start of class for some international students.
McGill student Shachin Dev, who is from India, has worked remotely on his PhD in medical physics since January, but says the nine and a half hour time difference is proving challenging.
“I was supposed to do experiments which I am totally missing. We are right now focusing on things we can do remotely,” he said. “In that way it's a kind of loss to my studies — if I had been there things would be better.
Dev wanted to start this semester in Montreal, but Canada again extended the ban on direct flights from India until Sept. 21, forcing Dev to re-book again.
Dev is now in Serbia, a country that has a visa on arrival for Indian nationals. Though fully vaccinated, he's quarantining before boarding a flight to Montreal via Frankfurt.
Frustrated with the ever changing rules, Dev hopes Canada relaxes measures for students.
“Canada is allowing US citizens [in] for non-essential [reasons],” he said, adding that double-vaccinated students from India are prohibited from entering even when it’s for “essential purposes.”
Canada imposed the ban on India because of the Delta variant that was ravaging that country last spring.
But experts say the focus should be on who is coming in: those who are fully vaccinated and test negative.
“If you wanted to reduce the chances or speed by which that variant is imported to Canada, then a direct ban when there was no or little Delta in Canada might have made sense,” said infectious diseases expert Dr. Matthew Oughton, “but that horse has left the barn, and to continue that ban now doesn't make a lot of sense.”
The federal government told CTV the ban on direct flights allows travellers to be tested for COVID once they've left a high risk country, reducing the risk of contracting the virus between receiving the test and boarding a flight to Canada.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Most of the city is evacuating': Gridlock on Alberta highway after evacuation order in Fort McMurray
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Sask. police seize 1.5M pieces of evidence, lay 60 more charges in child exploitation case
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
'Inappropriate' behaviour shuts down Dublin to New York City portal
Less than a week after two public sculptures featuring a livestream between Dublin, Ireland, and New York City debuted, 'inappropriate behaviour' in real-time interactions between people in the two cities has prompted a temporary shutdown.
Bouchard scores late to lift Oilers over Canucks, tie series
After a final frame that saw the visiting Vancouver Canucks claw their way back and tie the game late, a slap shot from the point by Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard with 38 seconds left (until what seemed like certain overtime) iced the 3-2 victory for Edmonton to knot the series.
Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker rails against Pride month, working women in commencement speech
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker railed against Pride month, working women, President Biden's leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and abortion during a commencement address at Benedictine College last weekend.
King Charles III unveils his first official portrait since his coronation
King Charles III has unveiled the first portrait of the monarch completed since he assumed the throne, a vivid image that depicts him in the bright red uniform of the Welsh Guards against a background of similar hues.
Full List Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Alberta announces the 4 health agencies that will replace AHS later this year
The province has released more information on its plan to break up Alberta Health Services and replace it with four sector-based health agencies.
Biden administration moving ahead on US$1 billion arms package for Israel, AP sources say
The Biden administration has told key lawmakers it is sending a new package of more than US$1 billion in arms and ammunition to Israel, two congressional aides said Tuesday.