New Delhi: Following strong objections from the US, the Civil Aviation Ministry is considering a move to reduce the list of dignitaries who are exempted from security checks at airports, from the existing 33 categories to only four or six categories, which may include the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, Speaker and Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama.
If cleared, the move will have reciprocal effect. This means the Indian government, in turn, will extend the favour to only four or six top dignitaries from the US.
However, both the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will have to clear the proposal.
Confirming the move, Civil Aviation Secretary Dr Nasim Zaidi said: “Yes, it is under serious consideration but no final decision has been taken.” He said the issue came up during the India-US Aviation Security Group meeting held in the US recently. Stating that the US authorities suggested that the list be pruned to four or six categories, Zaidi said this would have to be done on reciprocal basis.
05/03/12 Ajmer Singh/Indian Express
0 comments:
Post a Comment