Comments
India is planning to upgrade its visa system in Bangladesh to keep up with the demand and ensure ‘transparency’.
“Our High Commission in Bangladesh probably issues the highest number of visas (over seven lakh a year) in the world and yet the demand is four times higher. We are trying to upgrade our visa application systems there. We are trying to have more personnel there,” Vikas Swarup, spokesperson of Ministry of External Affairs, told media persons recently.
The Indian visa system faced serious criticism in Dhaka with locals alleging that the e-application system is rigged. While individual users fail to get the system-generated dates (e-token) for appointment with the issuing authorities, the same is provided by scores of ‘e-token agencies’ against hefty charges across the Bangladeshi capital.
Demand-supply gapBusinessLine highlighted the issue in a report on April 7 wherein the Indian authorities blamed computer glitches and the lack of processing capacity.
Against the daily demand of nearly 7,000 visas, the Indian High Commission in Dhaka can process only 3,500 visas due to manpower shortage. To solve the problem, the embassy needed at least 30 more visa officers.
The BusinessLine report was followed by online petition from Bangladeshi visa applicants. Swarup said the entire issue cropped up from the demand-supply mismatch.
According to him, the Centre is aware of the problem and is “trying to ensure a completely streamlined, transparent and efficient system.”
Subject of bilateral talks?His remarks led to a flurry of media reports in Bangladesh, with top online newspapers expressing hope that streamlining of the visa system would feature in bilateral talks during External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s scheduled visit to Dhaka in July.
India earns huge revenue from export of services, including healthcare, education and professional training to visiting Bangladeshi nationals. Also, easy availability of visa is a pre-requisite for the success of India-driven regional cooperation initiative.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.