Dubai June 7, 2004
UNI
The Kuwait India Business Council (KIBC) has urged the
Indian government to take proactive initiatives to strengthen economic
and cultural ties with Kuwait which is home for 400,000 Indian expatriates.
At its first major meeting, the KIBC asked New Delhi
to issue NRI identity cards to overseas Indians to enable them to vote
when they visit home during elections.
It has complained that besides the complicated visa
rules, the air fares to Indian destinations were too expensive to attract
tourists and visitors.
The KIBC chairman, Mr Gori Shankar Khandelwal was quoted
by Kuwait Times as saying that New Delhi should facilitate Kuwaitis’
visit to India on holidays and business.
The council suggested that specialist tourism and information
centres should be opened in Kuwait and encourage Kuwaiti businessmen
to invest in India.
The members of the council also highlighted the difficulties
faced by the Indian expatriates in the field of education as they are
not allowed to attend university in Kuwait.
They, therefore, urged the opening of exam centres specifically
for NRIs and set quotas for them in Indian colleges.