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The Facebook page of the High Commission of Canada in India is flooded with enquiries and complaints from travellers left stranded waiting for a visa, in many cases for more than a month. The commission has warned travellers to "anticipate delays and file application as far in advance as possible" due to the strike by the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers.
Among the questions asked are whether travellers can withdraw visa applications, when the strike was going to end, and why they were being put through this. Without giving any definite answer, the authorities said the offices were working normal hours. But travel companies are telling customers to plan their trip only after they secure a visa.
"The turnaround time for issuance of visa has gone up tremendously because of the strike. We are trying to get the passports stamped for those who have to depart immediately, but this is something we cannot influence very much," a senior executive of a travel company who did not wish to be named said.
