WHY IS THE WORLD'S LARGEST INDIAN VISA CENTER IN DHAKA?

Shahnaz Parveen BBC Bangla, Dhaka 14 July 2018

India Bangladesh Visa Home Ministers of India and Bangladesh today inaugurated an Indian visa application center in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. Which is the largest Indian visa center in the world.   The Visa Center has been set up in Jamuna Future Park, a luxury shopping mall in Dhaka, covering an area of ​​18,000 square feet.

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With the launch, other Indian visa application centers in Dhaka will be closed in two steps.   The new Visa Center looks like a five-star hotel lobby.   The center has 48 counters, vending machines for tea and coffee, light food stalls, and separate counters for the elderly and women.   The new center has a comfortable waiting room with air-conditioning, where previously you had to wait in long lines on the road.   But why is the world's largest Indian visa center in Bangladesh?   In fact, the reason why Bangladeshis care so much is that Bangladeshis are the top foreign tourists visiting India.   As PinakRanjan Chakraborty, the former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh says.   "It was needed because the number of people from Bangladesh who want to come here has increased a lot," he says.   "The visa centers that we had before were no longer open. That's why we had to open a new visa center. It will be more convenient to get a visa. Now the largest number of Bangladeshis come to India."   Read more on BBC Bangla Delhi upset over Bangladeshi visa crisis.   New rules to get Indian visa.  

According to data released by the Indian Ministry of Tourism last year, Bangladesh has surpassed even the United States in terms of the number of foreign tourists visiting India. In 2016-17, about 1.5 million Indian visas were issued in Bangladesh.   A large part of this is medical visa. A large part of India's income from medical tourism also comes from medical prospects from Bangladesh.   But Sagar Ahmed, a visa processing agent in Dhaka, said the biggest visa issue was for tourism.   He says, "Many people go to see a doctor but they also take that tourist visa. Because medical visa requires a lot of paperwork. 80 percent apply for tourist visa. Medical visa is in the second place. Business visa is the least because it is very complicated to process."   Just a few days ago, Bangladeshis had to suffer a lot to get an Indian visa. India has taken various measures to make it easier. Under it, visas are now being issued for up to five years. The rules have been changed from time to time.   To facilitate the application process, even to attract Bangladeshis during the special festival season, various facilities and offers have been arranged for tourists.   Such measures include hot use at border checkposts, submission of medical harassment complaints, and information about halal food stores.   Even West Bengal is in competition with other provinces. And this is because of the amount of money that Bangladeshis spend going to India. Bangladeshis are going to India mainly to visit, shop and see a doctor.   As the central bank of Bangladesh, Bangladeshis bought  60 million in foreign currency to visit India in 2016, which is more than the previous year.   You can read more: Why the violence in Pakistan before the election   Croatia: Five facts that may not be known   Why anti-President Trump protests in London   World Cup 2018: Why Kante is the behind-the-scenes hero of France

Written by, Sayka Arifin Orpita

References (Information Collected)  

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