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Assocham survey has mentioned that the foreign investments in the nation are being hampered because of the visa processing policy. According to a survey, which as conducted by Assocham on 100 businessmen who have their tie ups with foreign firms, India is not still considered as a "hospitable country" for business investments.
The industry survey reserved the most blame for Indian missions abroad.
"Officials accountable for issuance of visas in most of Indian missions overseas go on treating visa seekers with a behaviour which is least friendly and often amounts to killing India's prospects of becoming a lead nation for absorption of FDI," Assocham said.
The home ministry along with external affairs ministry is looking into streamlining the visa processing. This step has been adopted by home ministry after it was found out that a large number of Chinese are working in India with business visas. Meanwhile, the MHA has instructed all foreign nationals working here on a business visa to leave the country by Oct 31.
The sectors which are facing more damage due to this include telecommunications, power, oil and gas, and infrastructure sectors by the visa procedures.
"National security is, of course, the prime over-arching concern today. Subject to this singular constraint, India needs to reorient its visa regime around the world and polish its officials concerned in foreign missions, especially in countries which are our focus areas to impart the sense that India is a hospitable country," said the lobby group.
Assocham general secretary D.S. Rawat has mentioned in his leetr to P Chidambaram that only a six-month single entry visa is issued, but actually business visas can be issued over period of five entries with multiple entries.
"It has also been pointed out that if this matter has to be resolved to match and meet modern-day competitive business requirements, which cause considerable hardships to all concerned, clear instructions - including revised guidelines to all those who deal with this matter in India's missions abroad - need to be formulated and executed," the industry lobby said.
