Worried about the liberal visa regime in China wooing away research scholars and foreign students from India, Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon has written to Home Secretary V K Duggal urging him to move swiftly towards liberalising and simplifying the current system for granting visas to international students.

Among the specific measures suggested are granting long-term visas to foreign students already in India, setting up a Coordination Committee to clear research proposals in a speedy manner, residence permits on arrival and creating a “Green List” of countries or courses for immediate grant of visas.

Calling for a Secretary-level meeting to rapidly implement the required steps, Menon has said that the current practice for student and research visas “projects the wrong image of India.” Also, it is not “consistent” with India’s policy “approved at the highest political level,” of “building constituencies abroad” — in fact, Menon pointed out that “we even compare unfavourably with China.”

Beijing has been actively encouraging prominent scientists, academics, scholars and think tanks from all over the world to visit China for research, with a view to promote its global profile.

The Foreign Ministry had received several complaints about “delays and difficulties” in the issue of long-term visas, clearances of research proposals and visa renewals. The US government had also raised the issue with India, especially in the context of US scholars selected under the Fulbright programme, implemented under an inter-governmental agreement. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had placed “high importance” on the need to simplify administrative procedures.

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