China India Photo:CFP

India's reported move to facilitate visas for Chinese technicians shows the need of the Indian side to maintain strong economic ties with China. Experts said that this is a positive message from the Indian authorities, which will be beneficial for economic and trade ties between the two major economies in Asia to get back on track.

India has put in place a portal to facilitate business visas for Chinese technicians, whose expertise is required in Indian manufacturing firms in the sectors that are covered under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) programs, Indian media outlet The Economic Times reported on Wednesday, citing a senior government official.

According to the report, the portal began functioning last week, and India's Ministry of Home Affairs met with various departments to sensitize and train them on how the portal is to be used.

In another report, the Times of India said on Wednesday that the Indian online visa portal has enabled Chinese nationals to apply for e-business visas, facilitating fast-track approvals for those coming in to execute projects under the PLI arrangement.

An India-based business representative told the Global Times on Thursday on condition of anonymity that the reported new visa facilitation service has not been made available to Chinese citizens yet. But he noted that "it's expected that soon, Chinese citizens will be able to apply for e-commerce visas."

In Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third term, efforts will be made to boost the economy and employment, such as selectively allowing cooperation with China and prioritizing opening up visas, and the visa facilitation measure is one approach, the insider said.

Over the past four years, the China-India relationship has experienced ups and downs. Recent measures taken by Modi's government, including potential relaxations in visa policies for Chinese company employees, are a relatively positive development, Qian Feng, director of the research department at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times on Thursday.

The reported visa facilitation measure comes as various sectors in India, particularly the business community, consistently advocate improving these visa policies, Qian said.

Since the border conflict between China and India in June 2020, the Indian government has taken a more confrontational approach toward Chinese firms. This has involved measures like banning more than 300 Chinese apps, launching probes over so-called tax and money-laundering concerns, and intensifying oversight of Chinese investments in the country.

Among other restrictions, the rigid visa policies prevented skilled Chinese technicians from entering India, adversely affecting collaborative projects and hindering India's economic growth and manufacturing sector, Qian said.

A report by The Economic Times in June said that Indian electronics manufacturers had suffered $15 billion in production losses and 100,000 job cuts due to escalating tensions with China. Visa delays for Chinese executives were hindering the industry's expansion plans, leading to a $10 billion export opportunity loss and $2 billion in value-added losses, the report said.

Before 2020, there were more than 1,000 Chinese enterprises in India and tens of thousands of staffers from China. But as of January this year, there were no more than 300 Chinese companies in the country and less than 800 personnel, the Global Times learned from an India-based industry insider.

More efforts are still needed from the Indian side to win back the trust of Chinese businesses.

"Until India's business environment for Chinese enterprises shows clear improvement, investment and operational risks remain high in the South Asian country," the industry insider said, indicating that investors need to remain alert to possible risks of their businesses.