The central government has approved the introduction of
visa-on-arrival (VoA) service at Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi
airports, a minister said on Sunday.
“The new
facility will allow citizens of 11 countries - Japan, Singapore,
Finland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos,
Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia - to obtain tourist visas upon arrival in
Kerala,” Kerala Tourism Minister A.P. Anil Kumar said.
He
added that the preparations are on to implement the scheme at the two
airports. The minister hoped the new facility would encourage more
tourists from these countries to travel to Kerala.
The
decision to introduce the VoA service at five airports in the country,
including Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, was taken at the third meeting
of the Inter-ministerial Committee on Tourism, subject to approval from
the ministry of home affairs.
According to Minister
of State for Home Affairs Mullappally Ramachandran, the ministry has
given the go-ahead to the proposal. “K.C. Venugopal, minister of state
for civil aviation, is leading efforts to put in place the facilities
required to implement the visa-on-arrival scheme at the two airports.
The groundwork is nearing completion and the service will soon be
available for tourists,” the Kerala tourism minister said.
Source: http://www.thehindu.com
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