[Reader-list] On the restrictions to foreign scholars to visit India

[Patrice Riemens]

this morning I was at my faculty (geography, university of amsterdam) & i 
conducted a quick & dirty survey amongst my india-going collegues to see 
what their perception was of this hot subject on the list.

yes, they'd vaguely heard about it (through me, probably). no, they were 
not unduly worried. formally there had always been many restrictions 
thrown on the path of researchers visiting india, and declaring your 
intentions as such was a blueprint for visa refusal, or at least 
considerable delay. so they never did. whatever the true reason of their 
visit (varying from field-work to quick evaluation for aid ministry 
subsidised projects) the purpose of their travel was invariably 'tourism'. 
same applies for the students, whose stay includes some highly leisurable 
destinations such as surat's of moembaai's famous slums. but was that not 
tricky? after all there is a wealth of documentary evidence testifying to 
their 'untouristy' activities in India (seminar participants list, reports 
etc etc). no, there had never been any problems. yes, it looks like the 
situation is tightening up of late, but then it had been even more 
difficult in the late seventies/ early eighties and had become liberal in 
the nineties, so it was just a return to the status quo ante, in fact. and 
oh yes, indian customs were really a breeze these days!

looks like globalisation rules OK to me. goods may come in unhindered,
business dito, only ideas and their carriers could encounter problems.  
that is if, when, and where the powers that be choose to do so. the
principal problem with the clearance restrictions, naturally not adressed
by the esteemed & most honourable SC, is that obtaining the such takes the
sort of time delay unlikely to be available by the applicants in these
fast-moving epoch. so the goal is achieved even without any censorship of
content needs to take place.

bihar leads the way, the late arvin das used to comment...

cheers from patrice and his mumbling Diiiino!