China Has Stopped Issuing Visas For Indians; Govt’s Tit-For-Tat Policy Ensures No Chinese Tourist Get Indian Visa

Ministry of External affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi has said that it is not the right time to resume issuing visas to Chinese nationals, given the Covid situation in the country.

He made the statement days after India announced suspension of tourist visas issued to Chinese citizens.

No Visas From China Either

Bagchi cited the Covid situation in Chinese cities like Shanghai behind the move.

He added that the country itself has not issued any visas to Indians and has suspended its issuance since 2020.

Hence it is “not the right time” to discuss the issuance of tourist visas for China.

Indian Students In China

India had asked China to allow Indian students enrolled in Chinese universities to enter the country for physical classes.

China has refused to do so, putting in jeopardy the future of approximately 22,000 Indian students.

Types Of Passengers Allowed In India

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) issued a circular on April 20 regarding India which said that tourist visas issued to nationals of China are no longer valid.

It listed the types of passengers who can enter India:

• Nationals of Bhutan, India, Maldives and Nepal
• Passengers with a residence permit issued by India
• Passengers with visa or an e-visa issued by India
• Passengers with an overseas citizen of India (OCI) card or booklet
• Passengers with a persons of Indian origin (PIO) card
• Passengers with a diplomatic passport

Worrying Situation In China

The pandemic seems to be alive and kicking in China with reports of 1,494 new locally transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases and 47 deaths in the past 24 hours.

1,292 of the cases came from Shanghai while the rest were reported in 16 other provincial-level regions on the mainland including 56 in Jilin, 48 in Beijing, and 46 in Zhejiang.

China also reported 9,791 locally transmitted asymptomatic infections of the virus in the past 24 hours, of which 9,330 local asymptomatic carriers were identified in Shanghai.

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