Same-day visa for Indian biz, no cap on students: Cameron

February 19, 2013

visa_for_Indian

Mumbai, Feb 19: In a measure to attract more Indian businessmen and students, British Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday announced a same-day visa service for investors and no limit on the number of students from the country.

“We have the biggest visa operations anywhere in the world right here in India. I announce that we are going to introduce for businesses a ‘same-day visa’ service to those who want to come and invest in our country,” Cameron said at a business meeting held in the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel here.

Cameron said he wanted UK companies to help India develop new cities and districts along a 600 mile (equivalent of 1,000 km) corridor between Mumbai and Bangalore, generating investment projects worth up to $25 billion.

“With me I’ve got architects, planners and finance experts who can work out the complete solution. It would unleash India’s potential along the 1,000 km corridor from Mumbai to Bangalore, transforming lives and putting British businesses in prime position to secure valuable commercial deals,” said Cameron in an interaction with the staff of Hindustan Unilever, the Indian unit of Anglo-Dutch FMCG major Unilever.

Cameron is on a 3-day visit to India with the largest trade delegation taken abroad by a British PM to date, saying he wanted UK firms to work with both the Indian and British governments to develop nine districts to link India’s financial capital Mumbai with its tech hub Bangalore.

He said India should open up its markets to allow foreign direct investment in hitherto closed sectors. Cameron is gung ho over the Mumbai-Bangalore corridor project while forecasts from his office showed that 5.8 per cent of India’s population growth would be in the corridor, contributing 11.8 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product growth by 2020.

Cameron’s office said British and Indian officials had been working with business representatives from the two countries on the Mumbai-Bangalore project since last year and had produced an initial assessment of its scale and potential.

Accordingly, the first phase of the project would involve investment in physical infrastructure, such as transport networks, telecommunications and power generation.

Later construction would concentrate on social infrastructure such as welfare and education. India has pushed the building of giant development “corridors” to accelerate the growth of its manufacturing base, which has lagged behind its IT and services industry.

The government has also planned to build 24 new industrial cities along a 1,483 km (920 mile) railway line between New Delhi and Mumbai with Japanese funding, but the project has progressed slowly.

Meanwhile, the UK government would be willing to co-fund a feasibility study, on a match funding basis, with the Indian government costing up to 1 million pounds ($1.55 million). By 2030, if realised, the project could generate close to half a million jobs, while indirect jobs could bring the total in the region to two million, Cameron's office said.

“Our initial scoping work suggests that accommodating the 3-4 million people attracted to each of the new cities would require close to 1 million new homes, up to 120 schools, 10 colleges and hospitals,” the office said. Meeting with corporate India this evening here, Cameron announced same-day visa services and said there would be no limit on the number of students from here studying in Britain and also no cap on the length of time they can stay and work in graduate-level jobs after they qualify in his country.

He made a similar announcement with regard to businessmen visas saying: “....we are going to introduce for businesses a same-day visa service for those who want to come to our country and invest...”

Cameron will fly to Delhi tomorrow for talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on a range of issues.

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Agencies
February 10,2020

New Delhi, Feb 10: After an hour-long standoff between the security forces and the students on Monday, the police resorted to a lathi-charge on the protesters near Holy Family hospital which is within walking distance of Jamia Millia Islamia.

A scuffle ensued when police confronted the protesters who tried to push forward towards Parliament. The lathi-charge was made to push back the protesters.

In the melee that ensued, many from both sides fainted.

Some security forces personnel resorted to the lathi-charge while others pushed back the protesters when they threw water pouches at the security forces and abused them.

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News Network
July 16,2020

New Delhi, Jul 16: The Rajasthan High Court will hear Thursday afternoon a petition filed on behalf of the Sachin Pilot camp, challenging a move to disqualify dissident MLAs from the state assembly.

The plea against the disqualification notices sent from the Speaker’s office to Pilot and 18 other Congress MLAs will be heard by Justice Satish Chandra Sharma.

The 19 MLAs were sent notices Tuesday by the Speaker after the Congress complained that the MLAs had defied a party whip to attend two Congress Legislature Party meetings. 

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News Network
March 7,2020

Mumbai, Mar 7: Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray visited Ayodhya on Saturday to commemorate 100 days in office and pledged Rs 1 crore towards the building of the Ram Temple.

Taking a dig at BJP, Uddhav said his party had separated from its erstwhile ally but not Hindutva.

Recollecting the contribution of his father Balasaheb Thackeray, uddhav said he was forced to skip the Sarayu River 'aarti' due to Coronavirus fears but he would continue visiting Ayodhya.

Earlier in the day, the Sena, which heads the tripartite dispensation in the state, said there was no change in its ideology.

Launching a veiled attack on BJP, an editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' also said that Lord Ram and Hindutva is not the sole property of any single political party.

The Sena also said the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government — which also comprises the NCP and the Congress — has completed 100 days, much to the chagrin of those who were claiming that the new dispensation will not survive more than 100 hours.

“Those whose government lasted for 80 hours were claiming that the Thackeray regime will not last for even 100 hours. But this MVA government not only thrived but has instilled trust in the minds of people during this period with its performance,” the editorial said.

The Sena was apparently referring to the second inning of the erstwhile Devendra Fadnavis government which lasted for only 80 hours in November last year.

"Hence, CM Thackeray's visit to Ayodhya has to be welcomed as he is offering the flowers of works (done by the government) at the feet of Lord Shriram," it said.

The Sena said Thackeray's visit to the temple town is out of devotion for Lord Shriram. "The government in Maharashtra comprising three ideologically different parties is working as per Constitution and Thackeray is leading such government," it said.

The edit said on this background various questions were raised over Thackeray's visit to Ayodhya by his political opponents. "The government maybe backed by anyone, but Uddhav Thackeray and the Shiv Sena remain the same from within and outside. There is no change in the ideology. Lord Shriram and Hindutva is not the property of any single party," it stated.

Referring to senior RSS leader Suresh 'Bhaiyyaji' Joshi's remark that the Hindu community is not synonymous with the BJP and that opposing the BJP does not amount to opposing Hindus, the Sena said similarly Ayodhya belongs to all.

"The political and cultural battle in Ayodhya is now over. The Supreme Court cannot be thanked enough for this (for its verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute case that allowed construction of the Ram temple)," it said.

Hailing the Supreme Court's November, 2019 verdict, the Sena said the country had to fight a big battle to prove that Ayodhya belonged to Lord Shriram.

"In that battle, several (people) were unmasked. But only (late) Shiv Sena president Balasaheb Thackeray stood behind the Ayodhya (temple) campaigners like a mountain," it said.

Bal Thackeray created trust among Hindus from across the world about the creation of the temple, the Sena said. The party further said late Thackeray's assertion that he was proud if the Babri mosque was razed by Sena workers and that the temple of Lord Ram would come up in Ayodhya was akin to the thunder of "thousands of lightnings" in the sky.

"The Hindu culture got lit up in the glow of that lightning. The resplendent rays showed the path of power to the Hindu community. Hence, no one can deny the contribution of the 'Hinduhridaysamrat' (Bal Thackeray) as good as that of Lord Shriram, in creating the current political order in the country," the Sena said.

"We have experienced several times that Balasaheb lives in the mind of Ayodhya. Now Uddhav Thackeray himself is going there with the same faith. He had gone there when not in power. He is going there now after becoming chief minister with the same humility. Lord Shriram is of everyone," the Sena said.

The party said Maharashtra is being run on the path shown by Lord Shriram and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. "A Ram Rajya entails fulfilling promises made to the people. This is precisely what Mahatma Gandhi wanted, and the government following this ideology is in place in Maharashtra. It will continue work on that line. Ultimately, Lord Shriram is there to support it," the Sena said.

Thackeray completed 100 days in the office on Friday. He had assumed office as the chief minister of the Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government on November 28 last year, after the Sena joined hands with the NCP and the Congress.

Senior Sena leader Sanjay Raut had said that Thackeray will not take part in the 'aarti' programme on the banks of river Sarayu in the temple town.

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