The ongoing tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi have taken hit on the number of tourists visiting India, reported the Indian publication The Hindu.
According to a report issued by the Indian home ministry, the number of Pakistani tourists going to India was at 104,720 in 2016 and stood at 57,823 in the whole of 2018 and first three months of 2019.
A senior Indian government official who spoke, to The Hindu, said that in August 2016 New Delhi had initiated an electronic visa clearance process for Pakistani citizens.
The policy was introduced for countries under the restricted category, like Pakistan, China and Afghanistan. Under the process any visa application from citizens of these countries has to be cleared by the home ministry after receiving inputs from the security agencies within 60 days.
Also read:Pakistan closes Samjhota Express train service with India
The report also stated that from January 2018 till March 2019 India had issued 16,121 Long Term Visas to Pakistani citizens.
The publication also reported that the BJP government is planning to reintroduce the Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2019.
The Modi-led government plans to grant citizenship to six religious minorities Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians and Buddhists from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who came to India before December 31, 2014 under the bill.
The on going tensions between the nuclear-armed states forced n Pakistan to close the Samjhota Express train service with India in August.
Railways Minister SheikhSheikh Rashid Ahmed, while announcing the decision, had said, “Till I am the railways minister, Samjhota Express train service will not operate.”
Samjhota Express ran twice a week from Lahore to Attari via the Wagah railway station.
The move came days after the Indian government stripped occupied Kashmir of its special autonomy.