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India has joined the UK s travel red list - effectively banning travel - as a deadly second wave of infections sweeps the country.
British and Irish nationals can travel to the UK from India, but they must now isolate in a government-approved hotel.
India has seen soaring infection rates, a rapidly rising death toll and the discovery of a new virus variant.
The spike has overwhelmed hospitals, creating a critical shortage of oxygen, intensive care beds and ventilators.
On Friday, India recorded 332,730 coronavirus cases, the highest one-day tally anywhere in the world for the second day in a row. Daily deaths from Covid-19 rose by a record 2,263 in the previous 24 hours.
BBC News
By Lucy Hooker
image captionBiju Mathew flew from Kochi via Mumbai and Frankfurt to beat the Friday deadline
When Biju Mathew heard that India was going onto the UK s travel red list, he leapt into action. I couldn t afford to stay away, he says. I had to get back to work.
The social services manager from Walsall, UK, who was in India visiting family, began ringing local travel agents in attempt to beat the Friday deadline.
From Friday 04:00 BST, most travellers who have been to India in the last 10 days will be refused entry to the UK unless they hold UK passports or residence rights. Those that do will be required to quarantine in hotels on arrival, at significant cost and inconvenience.