India to resume issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens
The diplomatic restoration of tourist visas comes after a gap of five years due to degradation of ties between India and China following a 2020 military clash between their troops along the disputed Himalayan border.
The embassy of India in China issued a statement on Wednesday and said that Chinese citizens can apply for a tourist visa to India after completing an online application, scheduling an appointment and personally submitting their passport and other important documents needed to obtain a visa.
These documents can be submitted to the Indian visa application centres in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou in south China's Guangdong province.
'Please be informed that all passport withdrawal requests for applications submitted in the India Visa Application Centre in Beijing must be accompanied by a passport withdrawal letter,' the embassy statement said.
The statement was also shared on the embassy's social media platform Weibo.
Indian Armed Forces and People's Liberation Army soldiers clashed in the Himalayan region's Galwan Valley in June 2020. At least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed in the neighbours' first deadly military confrontation since 1975.
Both armies came to blows and engaged in a physical clash over China's two tents and observation towers that India said were built on its side of the de-facto border, and which its troops set on fire after they were discovered by a patrol.
About 900 soldiers of both sides were involved in the hand-to-hand combat that followed, when they beat each other with rocks and wooden sticks embedded with nails.
The skirmish caused Indo-China ties to plummet to their lowest in decades as New Delhi and Beijing took steps to pause their bilateral engagements and trade. New Delhi heightened scrutiny of investments from China, banned popular Chinese mobile apps, and cut direct passenger air routes to China.
According to India's defence minister Rajnath Singh, the military stand-off showed China's disregard for a two-way pact between both the countries.
China suspended visas to Indian citizens and other foreigners around the same time due to the Covid-19 pandemic but lifted those restrictions in 2022, when it resumed issuing visas for students and business travellers.
Tourist visas for Indian nationals remained restricted until March this year, when both countries agreed to resume direct air service.
However, both Asian giants have taken steps to improve their relations in the past one year, with India and China holding several high-level talks between the top leaders – Chinese president Xi Jinping and prime minister Narendra Modi. The two met in Russia in October.
In July this year, India's foreign minister told his Chinese counterpart that both countries must resolve border friction, pull back troops and avoid "restrictive trade measures" to normalise their relationship.
Beijing has acknowledged Delhi's latest positive move, said Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun.
"China is ready to maintain communication and consultation with India and constantly improve the level of personal exchanges between the two countries," he said.
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