Nepali nationals visiting India can now obtain Indian SIM cards, marking a significant development.
Previously, they faced challenges due to the unavailability of Indian SIM cards, leading to communication difficulties within India and with their home country.
The previous requirement demanded a passport with visa stamps for Nepalis to access mobile connections. However, Nepali citizens do not require a visa to travel to India.
They often relied on assistance from Indian citizens or Nepali nationals possessing Indian Aadhar Cards for telecommunication services.
Ambassador Dr. Shankar Prasad Sharma highlighted the obstacles faced by Nepali citizens in obtaining Indian SIM cards due to technical issues. Fortunately, their requests were promptly processed by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Ministry of Communication (MoC).
The Indian Ministry of Communications has now introduced amendments to address this issue.
Under the new guidelines, Nepali citizens visiting India can acquire mobile connections using their passport, citizenship certificate, voter ID card, or a limited validity photo ID certificate issued by the Nepali mission in India. This provision also extends to citizens of Bhutan.
Nepali Ambassador to India, Shankar Prasad Sharma, hailed the Indian government’s decision as “great news.” He emphasized that Nepali citizens had previously faced challenges in obtaining SIM cards due to technical reasons. However, with the new provisions, they can now access Indian SIM cards more easily. Ambassador Sharma shared this update on his X account on Tuesday.
Nepalis and Bhutanese entering India via third countries must provide a copy of their passport along with valid visa stamps.
Additionally, the validity of these mobile connections will not exceed the maximum permitted stay duration in India or the visa validity.
Even if the permitted stay duration exceeds three months, the connection’s validity cannot surpass this limit. For the precautions, these connections won’t support international roaming.
