The cabinet of Sri Lanka has given its approval to a policy aimed at offering complimentary tourist visas to travelers from India and six other nations, as conveyed by Foreign Minister Ali Sabry on Tuesday. This initiative comes as part of ongoing endeavors to revitalize the tourism sector of the island nation, which is mired in debt.
Foreign Minister Sabry stated that this policy is set to be implemented as a pilot project and will be effective until March 31, 2024. The Cabinet, in an immediate decision, granted free entry to travelers from India, China, Russia, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia, and Thailand. This implies that tourists hailing from these countries will be able to secure visas for their Sri Lanka visits without incurring any charges.
India has traditionally been the foremost source of inbound tourism for Sri Lanka, a trend reflected in the September arrival statistics, where India stood at the top with more than 30,000 arrivals, constituting 26 percent of the total. Chinese tourists followed as the second largest group, with over 8,000 arrivals.
The tourist industry in Sri Lanka has been grappling with a significant decline since the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings, a tragic event that claimed the lives of 270 individuals, including 11 Indians, and leftover 500 people injured.
In addition to the tourism challenges, Sri Lanka is currently contending with an unparalleled economic crisis, which has persisted since the nation's independence from Britain in 1948. The country is also confronting political turmoil, with protesters demanding the resignation of President Rajapaksa.
This economic crisis has resulted in severe shortages of essential commodities, including food, medicine, cooking gas, fuel, toilet paper, and even matches. For months, Sri Lankans have been enduring lengthy queues outside stores to obtain fuel and cooking gas.
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