'Chalo Paris' was the buzz word in the French embassy here on Thursday with the French government deciding to drastically ease visa procedures for Indians wanting to visit France, and announcing the launch of 'Paris Chalo' that happens to be the official travel app developed for smart-phones and tablets, custom-made for Indian tourists planning a French holiday.
These moves come even as the number of visas delivered by French consulates in India jumped by a whopping 33% in 2014 compared to 2013. A total of 80,000 visas were delivered from January to October 2014. This number is expected to touch the 90,000 mark by year-end.
Announcing the visa relaxations, Ambassador of France Francois Richier said tourist and business visas will be delivered within 48 hours or two working days from January 1, 2015. "This was a promise made by French minister for foreign affairs Laurent Fabius when he visited India in July. A text message will be sent automatically to the applicant should there be an extension of deadline due to missing documents or inaccuracies in the visa application."
Richier also announced the setting up of eight more France Visa Application Centres (VFS) in India in addition to the existing six. The new centres will be in Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Pune, Goa, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Hyderabad and Jaipur. "Visas will be delivered within 72 hours in these new centres, to take into account the necessary transportation of visa applications to the French consulates," Richier said.
Also, from now on any Indian citizen having his main residence in India can apply for a visa from any VFS centre in India. Till now applicants had to go to a specific VFS centre depending on their area of residence. The aim is to remove all barriers and hurdles, the French ambassador said.
That brings us to 'Chalo Paris', the official travel app, which will be available from December 10, 2014 on Apple Store/Android and Google Play. The app will provide information on monuments and tourist spots in Paris, inform the app user about restaurants in Paris with particular focus on vegetarian restaurants, along with recommendations by Rashmi Uday Singh, Paris-fan and food critic.
That apart, 'Chalo Paris' app will line up for the app user, shopping areas in popular districts, and night life. If the Indian visitor wants to visit other regions of France that are easily accessible from Paris, such as Normandy, the Loire Valley and Bordeaux, the app will be of great help. 'Chalo Paris' will come armed with practical features for English-French/French-English translation to assist travellers in day-to-day situations; all useful telephone numbers, and will also be a euro/rupee converter.
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