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Indian High Commissioner Dinesh Trivedi on Thursday announced that tourist visas for Bangladesh nationals will resume on June 28 from five visa centres, including Dhaka.
The development comes after the High Commision of India was forced to scale down visa operations two years ago. "I am very happy to announce that we are resuming our normal visa applications for tourist visas, which can be submitted from Sunday, 28th June 2026. We will continue to facilitate medical visas on urgent visas on humanitarian consideration and grounds," he said at the Indian Visa Application Centre (IVAC) at Jamuna Future Park. He said that the visas will be issued from five centres - Dhaka, Rajshahi, Chittagong, Sylhet, and Khulna - across the country and will be further expanded in the future. "We hope that this wil further strengthen the people to people ties between our soverign nations," Trivedi said. Trivedi, the newly appointed Indian high commissioner in Dhaka earlier today presented his credentials to the Bangladesh President, Mohammed Shahabuddin at the presidential palace, Bangabhaban. He was welcomed to Bangabhaban with a ceremony, including a guard of honour. Shahabuddin welcomed the new Indian High Commissioner to the country and expressed hope that he would contribute to the development of bilateral ties during his tenure. Trivedi then visited the Indian Visa Application Centre (IVAC) at Jamuna Future Park to inspect operations where he made the announcement of issuing tourist visas for Bangladeshi citizens On August 5, 2024, Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre in Dhanmondi was ransacked and set on fire. Five Indian Visa Application Centres (IVAC) in different cities in Bangladesh came under attack, and the Indian personnel working at development projects were threatened. Due to security threats and the attacks on High Commission premises, the High Commision of India was forced to scale down visa operations in Bangladesh. However. several people who apply for Indian visas travel to India for treatment of serious medical conditions and keeping in mind these humanitarian needs, despite security challenges the Indian High Commission had continued to operate the visa centres at Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, Sylhet and Rajshahi. India has been issuing more than 1500 visas across all categories except tourist visas daily. Medical and other emergency visas were processed on priority. Arrangements were also made to assist people with emergency needs in submitting their applications. Indian envoy to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi arrived in Dhaka by road on June 12. He entered Bangladesh through the Petrapole-Benapole border. Trivedi succeeds Pranay Kumar Verma, who served as Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh for four years until May this year. He is a former member of parliament from West Bengal's Barrackpore. He also served as a union minister during the UPA era of Manmohan Singh, as a member holding the minister of state for health and family welfare and then the railway ministry portfolio. (ANI)
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