Tourism ministry rings in new BSNL SIM for foreign tourists

Following the promises made during the Budget Session this year, the Ministry of Tourism in a major initiative announced the launch of BSNL SIM cards for foreign tourists in India. The facility is automatically available to tourists who come to India through e-tourist visas. The initiative was taken to provide better communication facilities to tourists and also to promote e-services.

According to the scheme, the SIM which will be preloaded with Rs 50 talk time and 50 MG Internet data will activate immediately. Initially, the SIM card will be available at terminal 3 of New Delhi's International Airport but soon all the 15 international airports of the country will offer this facility.

While launching the scheme on Wednesday, the Union Minister of State for Tourism and Culture said, "The facility will help the tourists to connect with their family members soon after their arrival in India.

Also, it will be a great help to them during their stay in the country." He also mentioned that the scheme will help promote the e-services like e-ticketing at tourist sites.

"Once someone gets comfortable using the e-service, he or she will always opt for cashless transactions," he added.

The scheme also provides the tourists to access the helpline in 12 different foreign languages via calls and messages round the clock.

"A tourist faces several difficulties in getting Indian SIM card as their mobiles are charged ISD rates. Besides, providing better experiences in India, the initiative will also save their money," said Sharma.

As per the scheme, the tourist is required to surrender the SIM card before leaving the country but it is not mandatory. "If any tourist wants to take the SIM, we will not object as it will automatically be deactivated beyond Indian boundaries," he added.

There will be a panel of BSNL officers who will collect copy of e-visa and first page of the passport from foreign tourists on arrival.

The restriction of the facility for e-visa tourists has promoted the service among tourists with a 56.6 per cent growth in December 2016, which was marked as the peak period of demonetisation crisis. Presently, tourists from 161 countries have been provided with the e-tourist visa facility at 16 International Airports in India.

In 2016, 10.79 lakh foreign tourists had visited India on e-tourist visa which was 142.5 per cent higher than the previous year. Services of e-tourist visa involves only online application, thereby cutting out on the involvement of any intermediary or agent.