The government of India announced some policy reversals for former Indian passport holders in the face of nationwide protests from the Indian-American community. It has lowered the fee but kept in place the rule requiring foreign citizens of Indian descent to get a "surrender certificate" for their Indian passport.
The change announced June 1 says those who have acquired American or other citizenship before May 31, 2010 will not have to pay the hefty $175 to surrender their Indian passports, but instead fork out $20 as "miscellaneous services fee," to get their surrender certificate.
The earlier rules, announced in the third week of May and effective immediately with retrospective effect, raised the ire of most Indian Americans.
Members of the Indian community and organizations like the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) launched petition drives to which thousands signed on. The petitions were sent to the Indian Prime Minister's Office and other authorities.
Responding to the protests, New Delhi made the change announced at a June 1 press conference at India House in New York City. The press conference was also attended by FIA leaders from the tri-state area.
"When people raise their issues, they do get noticed and the Government of India made the change," Prabhu Dayal, India's consul general in New York, told Desi Talk in a telephone interview.
"So the change was made because the community took it up. Whatever proposal the community has they should send it to us and we will take it up."
At the press conference, Dayal said the stringent passport-surrender rules announced in May were the result of a "huge security breach" in India, where an average 50 people a day are being caught holding or traveling on passports that are not their own.
There were also some Indian Americans who were continuing to use their Indian passports, he indicated.
He also announced that anyone getting other citizenships from June 1 onward would have to pay the mandatory $175. Additionally those who have already paid the $175 over the last couple of weeks would not be refunded that amount, he added.
At the time of travel, the surrender certificate would be accepted but will not be an absolute must, Dayal contended.
He dismissed as "absolute rumors" that airlines and Indian immigration authorities were demanding surrender certificates.
Leaders of FIA, Nirav Mehta, president, and Ramesh Patel, past president, felt the meeting had allayed some concerns but other issues remained
At least four representatives of FIA came to the meeting with the consul general.
"There were some concessions, but lots of things remain in limbo. We are not happy, but we got a little. But this is not the way to single out terrorists," Patel told Desi Talk after the meeting.
"On a scale of 1 to 100, in terms of the dissatisfaction and anger in the Indian community, I would say 60 percent has been diffused," Mehta told Desi Talk.
"But future U.S. citizens should not have to pay either and we are sending that petition to the Indian government. And if it is only a 'rumor' that people are being asked-for surrender certificates as the consul general says, then why bother going through the hoops to get one?"
But the rules up on the consulate website make clear that "foreign nationals of Indian origin applying or Indian visa, OCI [Overseas Citizenship of India] /PIO [People of Indian Origin] cards or other consular services are required to surrender their Indian passports (valid/expired) before the above services can be granted."
In the light of new developments, the FIA has postponed its June 4 rally against the surrender rules to a future date.
The FIA is in the process of submitting a request to Indian authorities that the $175 not be charged even to future U.S. citizens unless they fail to surrender their Indian passports within the given 90-day requirement.
The organization is also demanding that the fee for the entry visa ($233 for 5 years) be made the same as the fee for a visitor visa ($163 for 10 years, with the proviso that you cannot travel twice within 30 days).
