ID :
155363
Thu, 12/30/2010 - 08:45
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/155363
The shortlink copeid
Indian-Americans complain of delay in visa issuance by embassy
Washington, Dec 29 (PTI) The Indian-American community
has complained of "inordinate" delay by the Indian embassy in
issuance of visas, claiming that it is mainly due to
imposition of new rules and acute shortage of staff at various
consulates.
The community, which staged peaceful protest
demonstrations at various Indian consulates in the US --
Houston, San Francisco and Chicago -- earlier this month, now
plans to raise this issue with top officials of Indian
government during 'Pravasi Bharatiya Divas' in New Delhi next
month.
The outsourcing of visa application process three years
ago at the initiative of the then Indian Ambassador, Ronen
Sen, has not helped the situation either.
In some places like Houston and San Francisco, the delay
in issuing visas has run into four weeks.
Authorities say that the strict enforcement of the new
visa rules comes in the wake of the lessons learnt from the
case of David Coleman Headley, a Mumbai attacks plotter.
"The problem is compounding every passing day," said Los
Angeles-based Inder Singh, President of Global Organisation of
People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) International.
Now headed for New Delhi to attend the Pravasi Bharatiya
Divas, Singh was instrumental in holding a town hall meeting
of Sushmita Thomas, Consul General of India, San Francisco,
with the Indian-American community in the area.
"The sufferings of people have come to a point that we
cannot keep quiet anymore," Ramesh Shah, a leader of 'Ekal
Vidyalaya' in Houston said.
Shah had organised a day-long fast in Houston to protest
against the delay in issuing of visas by the mission there.
Another community activist, Vijay Pallod, alleged that he
was informed by the Houston consulate that it will take a
minimum of four weeks to get a visa, which used to be a
one-day procedure earlier.
"For me it was very hard to believe. The complaints I
have been hearing are true. When I tried to fill out the form
I got the alert message not to purchase tickets unless I have
visa," he said.
has complained of "inordinate" delay by the Indian embassy in
issuance of visas, claiming that it is mainly due to
imposition of new rules and acute shortage of staff at various
consulates.
The community, which staged peaceful protest
demonstrations at various Indian consulates in the US --
Houston, San Francisco and Chicago -- earlier this month, now
plans to raise this issue with top officials of Indian
government during 'Pravasi Bharatiya Divas' in New Delhi next
month.
The outsourcing of visa application process three years
ago at the initiative of the then Indian Ambassador, Ronen
Sen, has not helped the situation either.
In some places like Houston and San Francisco, the delay
in issuing visas has run into four weeks.
Authorities say that the strict enforcement of the new
visa rules comes in the wake of the lessons learnt from the
case of David Coleman Headley, a Mumbai attacks plotter.
"The problem is compounding every passing day," said Los
Angeles-based Inder Singh, President of Global Organisation of
People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) International.
Now headed for New Delhi to attend the Pravasi Bharatiya
Divas, Singh was instrumental in holding a town hall meeting
of Sushmita Thomas, Consul General of India, San Francisco,
with the Indian-American community in the area.
"The sufferings of people have come to a point that we
cannot keep quiet anymore," Ramesh Shah, a leader of 'Ekal
Vidyalaya' in Houston said.
Shah had organised a day-long fast in Houston to protest
against the delay in issuing of visas by the mission there.
Another community activist, Vijay Pallod, alleged that he
was informed by the Houston consulate that it will take a
minimum of four weeks to get a visa, which used to be a
one-day procedure earlier.
"For me it was very hard to believe. The complaints I
have been hearing are true. When I tried to fill out the form
I got the alert message not to purchase tickets unless I have
visa," he said.
