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This story is from January 6, 2015

Citizenship ordinance merging PIO, OCI schemes gets President’s nod

A day before the Pravasi Bharatiya meet opens in Gujarat, the President is said to have cleared an ordinance amending the Indian Citizenship Act to merge the Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) schemes.
Citizenship ordinance merging PIO, OCI schemes gets President’s nod
NEW DELHI: A day before the Pravasi Bharatiya meet opens in Gujarat, the President is said to have cleared an ordinance amending the Indian Citizenship Act to merge the Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) schemes. This will ensure life-long Indian visa to PIOs, besides exempting them from police reporting.
The President has signed the Citizenship Ordinance, President's press secretary Venu Rajamony was on Tuesday quoted by the agencies as saying.
Home ministry officials contacted by TOI too confirmed the development.
The amendments to the Citizenship Act will benefit PIOs and will give them benefits like life-long visa and exemption from registering with the FRO/FRRO if their stay here exceeds six months. This is in line with an Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance to the Indian diaspora at New York’s Madison Square Garden, where he announced life-time visas for PIOs as well as merger of the PIO and OCI schemes.
READ ALSO: PIO cardholders will get lifelong Indian visa, PM Modi announces
The decision to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 was taken after large number of representations were received from PIOs, complaining about police reporting required beyond 180 days of stay, within the next 30 days. Also, PIO cardholders were eligible for only 15-year visas, as against lifelong visas provided to those OCI card-holders.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his speech at New York's Madison Square Garden had announced PIOs will get lifelong Indian visa.

The ordinance rolling PIO and OCI schemes into a single Indian Overseas Cardholder scheme will drop the clause requiring foreigners married to Indian citizens to continuously stay in the country for a period of one year before they can apply for Indian citizenship. The amendment will allow foreigners breaks not exceeding 30 days, to travel abroad during the mandatory one-year stay in India.

READ ALSO: Modi sets two-month deadline for merger of PIOs, OCIs
The Pravasi Bharatiya meet is being held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat from January 7 and 9. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the inaugural session on January 8.
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About the Author
Bharti Jain

Bharti Jain is senior editor with The Times of India, New Delhi. She has been writing on security matters since 1996. Having covered the Union home ministry, security agencies, Election Commission and the ‘prime’ political beat, the Congress, for The Economic Times all these years, she moved to TOI in August 2012. Her repertoire of news stories delves into the whole gamut of issues related to terrorism and internal strife, besides probing strategic affairs in India’s neighbourhood.

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