UK reformed visa rules for students but excluded India

British government’s decision to not include India from reform of student visa application process is attracting a lot of criticism in Britain.

A spokesman of the Labour Party described it as an act of self-harm which may threaten to push much more Indian students away from the places of learning in Britain.

The decision to not to consider students from India, about the new immigration rules is like an opportunity not availed, said James Kirkup, a functionary of Social Market Foundation. He even pointed out to the considerable decline in the numbers of Indian students which fell from 60,322 in September 2010 to 14,081 after seven years.

On the contrary, in that period alone, the number of Indian students studying in America and Canada had risen steadily.

Diane Abbott, the Labour Party’s spokesperson on Home Affairs, says it is an open discrimination to the students from India. It is sure to sour our relations with one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies.

The major controversy which can snowball comes ahead of an ‘India Week’ summit. A number of politicians from both countries such as British Trade Minister Liam Fox and Railway Minister from India, Piyush Goyal, besides other figures of the industry are expected to attend.

The summit will deal on post-Brexit opportunities, which will try to build the bilateral relationship as Britain is getting geared up to say goodbye to the EU customs union and potentially forge its own trade relations with other important countries.

Earlier, British Home Secretary Sajid Javid had declared that doctors and paramedics would not be included in an annual cap on Tier 2 visas. It has been seen as a positive move for the relations between both countries, as a considerable number of Indian doctors had been previously denied visa due to these restrictions.

The British government has also announced the extension of a programme under which students from a number of countries need reduced documentation when applying for student visas. The list of countries, which will be benefited included China, Bahrain, Indonesia, and the Maldives. India has been kept out.