India is set to ease Visa restrictions on 180 countries this week .Visitors will be able to apply online and get an answer in three days . After the visitor is approved, they can pick up the Visa at any airport in India.
Before this change,visitors to India from countries ,such as Britain and the US have to apply in person at Indian Consulates or Embassies.
Read More:
Advance visas have always been something of a bother for potential visitors to any country but the last year or so residents of the US have been plagued by difficulties trying to obtain visas to visit India. Originally processed by the consulates, of late the process has been subcontracted to a private operator, BLS, and it’s been a nightmare for many. Visas have been delayed beyond the proposed departure dates and numbers of passports have even been lost entirely. Forums are rife with complaints and the delays have cost both applicants and India alike. There have been announcements in English language Indian newspapers of decisions to begin visas-on-arrival and this sounds like a variation on that theme. I sincerely hope the government of India can remedy the current situation in the US for it’s visas and if the red tape can be eliminated to a certain extent by a program such as this, even better. But I’m skeptical as India is well known as the home of complications, learned and expanded upon, it seems, from colonial times. All we can do is wait & see.
Update: BLS is out, Indian Embassy is taking bids for a new visa facilitator for US travelers. Mention is also made at the bottom of the article about visas on arrival being available now.