The recently-introduced online visa application system by the Home Ministry was today welcomed by Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevi who said it would go a long way in boosting tourism in the country.
"The progress in the standardization of visa application forms and the integrated online application system in 120 Indian Missions abroad is yet another major milestone towards making the Indian visa application process tourist-friendly and a boost to Indian tourism," Chiranjeevi said.
The facility of the Integrated Online Visa Application System under the Immigration Visa and Foreigners Registration and Tracking (IVFRT) is now operational at 120 Indian Missions abroad. The system is operational at Indian embassies of Brazil, Ireland, South Africa, Sri Lanka, the Phillipines, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Mexico and New Zealand among others.
Besides helping foreigners get visa quickly and sharing information about travellers with other Indian agencies, the IVFRT will help in 'software-aided passenger profiling to identify 'risky' travellers at missions, integrated checkposts and foreigners registration offices and generate automated alerts on their overstaying.
The system enables the authorities to maintain a databank of all travellers from those countries applying for Indian visa and also keep a track of their movement after their arrival in the country.
