India today said Pakistan's failure to furnish a list of authorised tour operators was holding up the implementation of a group tourist visa scheme.
The scheme is not being delayed by any policy issue, Indian High Commissioner T C A Raghavan told a group of reporters here.
"We have given the list of tour operators from our side. We await the response of the government of Pakistan. Once they give a list of tour operators from their side, the agreement can be implemented immediately," he said.
Raghavan, on an official visit to Karachi, said: "There is no policy issue holding up group tourism. I think your government has to decide who should be the tour operators who can use that facility."
The group tourist visa scheme is part of a liberalised visa agreement signed by the two countries last year. The new regime, the first major overhaul since 1974, eased travel restrictions for businessmen, tourists and senior citizens.
Visas will be offered for 30 days to groups of 10 to 50 tourists organised by approved operators or travel agents.
The group tourist visas were to be launched from March 15 but the scheme could not start as Pakistan failed to send its list of authorised tour operators. The scheme also ran into rough weather after bilateral tensions escalated following clashes along the Line of Control.
It was only in April this year that the visa on arrival scheme for senior citizens, which was supposed to start on January 15, was put in place.
