New Delhi [India], November 21 : Foreign Affairs Expert Robinder Sachdev expressed optimism as India reopens tourist visa for Chinese citizens and called it a step towards the normalisation of ties between the two countries.
In an interview to ANI, he said, "This certainly is one more step, one more inch of normalisation and harmony of relations between China and India. Since Galwan, India has stopped issuing visas for any Chinese tourists to come to India."
Sachdev added, "Four months ago, in July, before the SCO meetings, India opened up and said, we will now allow Chinese tourists to apply for a visa and come to India. But that was only for people in China who could go to the Indian mission or embassy and apply for a tourist visa. Now, what India has done is that Chinese citizens, oftentimes in other countries, can go to the Indian embassy in that country and apply for a visa. So this makes it more convenient for Chinese tourists or businessmen to come to India... So this is one step of goodwill, I would say, one inch forward by India towards China and China is reciprocating also."
Earlier, Defence Expert Sanjeev Srivastava on Friday, hailed the recent news of the resumption of issuance of tourist visas to Chinese citizens worldwide, calling it a constructive development in the bilateral ties.
In a significant step towards normalising bilateral ties, India is learnt to have resumed issuance of tourist visas to Chinese citizens worldwide-- a move ending a five-year suspension imposed following the 2020 Galwan clash.
The fresh move followed some sequence of steps taken earlier this year, comprising the January 2025 agreement between India and China when the two countries agreed to resume direct passenger flights.
Officials, privy to the development, said that the decision followed an order issued in July this year suggesting to resume tourist visas for Chinese nationals.
A month ago, the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra pilgrimage, halted for five years, was also revived in June 2025, with the first group of Indian pilgrims crossing into Tibet.
Earlier, on April 1, marking 75 years of diplomatic ties, Presidents Xi Jinping and Droupadi Murmu, along with Premier Li Qiang and PM Modi, exchanged congratulatory messages, signalling renewed commitment to stability.
Throughout 2025, diplomacy between India and China intensified as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited Beijing in July, noting relations were "gradually moving in a positive direction" with a "fundamental basis for mutual strategic trust."
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reciprocated with a two-day trip to New Delhi in August, meeting National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and EAM Jaishankar to discuss border de-escalation and normalisation.
This paved the way for PM Modi's landmark visit to China on August 31, his first in seven years, for the SCO Summit in Tianjin, where he and Xi committed to viewing each other as "partners rather than rivals."
Earlier on November 10, Consul General of India in Shanghai, Pratik Mathur, on Monday welcomed the first batch of passengers arriving from New Delhi as direct commercial flights between India and China officially resumed after five years.
India in Shanghai wrote in an X post, "Fair Winds & Clear skies! India emerges as a Global Hub as people-to-people ties grow stronger. CG @PratikMathur1 was at hand to receive the first set of passengers as direct flights resumed between New Delhi and Shanghai."