New Delhi, March 25 (IANS). The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the continuation of the Immigration, Visa, Foreigner Registration and Tracking (IVFRT) Scheme for a period of five years beyond March 31, 2026, from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2031, with a budget outlay of Rs 1,800 crore.
The IVFRT platform aims to interlink and streamline operations related to immigration, visa issuance and registration of foreigners in India.
A press release issued by the Cabinet said that its aim is to provide convenience to legitimate travelers as well as strengthen national security. The project was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on May 13, 2010 with a budget of Rs 1,011 crore for a period up to September 2014.
The budget allocation for the project was subsequently revised in 2015 to Rs 638.90 crore and the implementation deadline was extended to March 31, 2017 and then to March 31, 2021 without any additional financial burden. The project was then approved by the Cabinet on January 19, 2022 with a budget outlay of Rs 1,365 crore for a five-year period from April 01, 2021 to March 31, 2026.
The Cabinet said the scheme will modernize the immigration and visa regime by adopting emerging technologies including mobile-based services and self-service kiosks for secure passenger movement. It will create a dynamic and scalable system at the nationwide level by upgrading and expanding the core infrastructure at immigration posts, FRROs and data centres.
Additionally, the project will optimize technology and service delivery by introducing an integrated digital platform, redesigning the core application architecture and strengthening the network and deployment framework for improved efficiency and user experience. This will provide convenience to legitimate travelers and strengthen national security. This service will help in maintaining continuity and incorporating innovative technological solutions to attract more foreign tourists to India in future.
The statement said that this will give a boost to tourism, medical and trade sectors. IVFRT has enormous positive impacts, which will boost international traffic, trade, commerce and tourism. This will pave the way for economic development and contribute to employment opportunities.
The IVFRT system has led to significant improvements in service delivery and operational efficiency across all immigration and visa related functions. The system has enabled 100 percent contactless and personal contactless visa process with online appointment scheduling and payment facilities, thereby reducing visa processing time. This has resulted in 91.24 percent e-Visa applications being approved within 72 hours in the last five years. The average clearance time of passengers at immigration posts has also reduced from the traditional 5-6 minutes to 2.5-3 minutes including biometrics.
Fast Track Immigration-Trusted Traveler Program (FTI-TTP) through automated e-gates implemented at 13 major airports has reduced the time taken for the immigration process from 2.5-3 minutes to 30 seconds. Currently its registration is free for Indian citizens and OCI cardholders.
–IANS
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