Black Lists’ of Indian-origin people

Context: The Ministry of Home Affairs announced that it has put an end to the local adverse lists commonly known as ‘Black Lists’ of Indian-origin people.

What is it?

• It is a list maintained by Indian Embassies in different countries and posts abroad.
• It contains list of Indian-origin people who have taken asylum (i.e. right to international protection in this other country) abroad under plea of alleged persecution in India. These asylum seekers in list are predominantly Sikhs.
• Those who are in list are denied visa services by Indian missions and posts in respective country.

Implications of the new move:

• Such Indian-origin asylees and their family members who are now not in adverse list, will be granted visa and consular services at par with foreigners of country in which they are living. They can also get Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) cards if they have held normal Indian visas for at least two years.
• The government has also delegated to state governments and Foreigners Regional Registration Officers (FRROs) to grant permits to foreigners to visit protected and restricted areas in the country.
• The state governments and FRROs can now grant such permits even for non-tourism purposes and even in areas not opened for tourism purposes.