India’s tourist visas are being reintroduced from June 28. Bangladeshis will be able to apply for Indian visas from Sunday.
Kolkata businessmen congratulated each other on the news of the visa launch.
Business organizations in the New Market area of Kolkata met on Sunday (June 27) in the hope that business will revive after a long recession.
The business associations of Kolkata’s Marquis Street, Free School Street and New Market areas discussed in the meeting how to provide better services to Bangladeshi tourists, how to strengthen security measures and where there are shortcomings. Starting from CCTV cameras, infrastructure was also reviewed.
According to the businessmen, Bangladeshis should experience the same Kolkata that they saw two years ago. Their goal is to create an environment where tourists can come to Kolkata without any fear or uncertainty.
Tourism-dependent areas in Kolkata, including New Market, Marquis Street, Free School Street, Sadar Street, Lindsay Street, etc., were the most affected by the closure of travel visas for Bangladeshis after August 5, 2024.
Businessmen claim that due to the prolonged decline in sales, many have had to take out loans, some have closed their businesses, and many have been forced to change careers.
The news of the visa launch has created a happy atmosphere in the New Market area. Hoteliers, clothing sellers, foreign currency exchange centers, mobile SIM sellers, and even hand-pulled rickshaw pullers are optimistic that this area will be bustling again.
Monotosh Saha, the head of Sohag Paribahan and president of the Marquis Street-Free School Street Traders Welfare Association, said, “We have been in a very difficult situation for the last two years. We hope to overcome that situation this time. Our goal is to restore New Market to its old place by building a relationship with Bangladeshi tourists like before.”
According to Sanjay Majumdar, the head of Green Line, the business was almost closed for two years. It is not possible to run the transport business depending only on medical visas. Marquis Street came to a complete standstill. Hopefully, those good days will return.