The number of nations whose citizens are eligible for visas on arrival (VoA) in India is likely to be expanded to include 13 countries largely from Europe, south-east and central Asia after a review convened by the PMO felt security conditions need not be a hurdle to promote tourism. 

Countries that could be offered VoA include Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Spain, France, Germany, Sweden, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Brazil and South Africa. At the meeting - also attended by officials from other ministries like culture and environment - it was made clear that security cannot be invoked to strike down important government initiatives.

Home ministry has been asked to work on details of the proposed visa regime in a manner that factors in security concerns by utilizing information-sharing agreements with Asean and the European Union while ensuring that travel to India becomes less hassle-free. 

Ramping up tourist numbers is seen as a significant revenue earner with 600,000 foreign visitors a year being a miniscule proportion of global tourism. With timely intervention, the sector can grow much faster than the 24 million jobs currently targeted in the 12th Plan. So far, the VoA scheme has registered modest success with over 10,000 visas issued last year. 

At present, 13 countries whose nationals can avail a visa on arrival include Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Laos and Myanmar. But the list excludes more populous nations even in the Asean who can be tapped for a much larger tourist footfall. 

Tourism minister Subodh Kant Sahai said, "Government is aware of the urgent need to develop infrastructure to ensure there is adequate connectivity, hotel room availability and facilities for tourists." The government is also drawing lessons from European countries that have leveraged tourism to tide over financial woes. 

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