KARACHI, June 8: Millions of people belonging to divided Indian and Pakistan families want to travel across the border to meet their relatives, but the procedure is so cumbersome that it is almost an ordeal to do so.

Pakistan and India have only one diplomatic mission in each other’s capital and most of the people intending to travel do not live in these cities.

The Indian High Commission recently started accepting visa applications through a courier service and that is a some sort of relief for many who find it difficult to go to Islamabad.

Still a large number of people have to travel to the capital for submitting the application or, if required, for interview.

These people are reportedly charged hundreds of rupees — instead of the normal fare of Rs15 — to board the first warning bus going to the Indian High Commission (IHC) in the Diplomatic Enclave, as the mission accepts only a limited number of applications each day.

Similarly in India, some visa-seekers have to travel sometimes between 2,000 and 4,000 kilometres to New Delhi to submit the visa application as the Pakistan High Commission does not accept applications through a courier service.

When Pakistanis reach Munabao, or for that matter any other Indian checkpost, they are required to fill in an immigration form. With many of the visitors not being literate they are seen imploring their fellow passengers to fill in the form them.

It is felt that if the high commission gives this form at the time of granting the visa such visitors may get it filled in beforehand and avoid a lot of hassle and embarrassment.

The visitors may also be informed about other requirements, like the number of photographs they are required to submit — which could be between four and 10 depending on the point of entry.

Owing to the nature of relations between India and Pakistan, visas are issued not for the entire country, but a certain towns and cities.

Visitors, including the elderly, women, and children, have to report their “arrival” and “departure” at a police station within 24 hours after arrival, or before departure.

In case of the Indians, they have to report their arrival or departure to police, along with their Pakistani host, who has to submit a copy of his national identity card.

Although the Indian government has tried to be a little kind to visitors and, under a new rule, allowed one person from a family to report for the entire family, the police are not aware of this rule and insist that each visitor should come and report to them.

During a recent visit to India by the Thar Express, when I went to the Ahmedabad police to report my arrival I was told to get all members of my family to the police station. My pleas that under the new rule “one member of family may appear and submit a written report on behalf of all,” were not accepted by the Additional Commissioner of Police (Special branch), Ahmedabad, who, after consultations with a senior official told me that there was no such rule.

When he was shown the rule written on the Regular Resident Permit issued with his signature, he read it and said: “I will look into it.”

How many photographs and what documents are required to be submitted at the time of reporting also varied at different places. At one station, four photographs were required, at another 10 while at the third only one was considered enough. One police station also demanded a photograph of the Indian host, who has to stand guarantee for the visitor.

However, at another place no photograph was required at all. In one city, I was told by a visitor, a neighbour had to sign a guarantee paper even for the Indian host.

While in one town, Pakistani visitors are told that they should not go out of the town’s municipal limits, in another place they are asked by police to go to other towns to report.

When I arrived in Adipur in Kutch (Gujarat) and reported my arrival at the local police station, I was told that Kutch being on the border with Pakistan, was a ‘sensitive’ district therefore I should report to the police head office in the district headquarters town of Bhuj, about 60 kilometres away.

My pleas that it would not be advisable for me to go without a visa to Bhuj, which being nearer to the border than Kutch should be even more ‘sensitive’ were not accepted.

Getting a visa extended is quite a difficult job and it can be done only in Delhi. If the government of the state where Pakistani is staying rejects the extension request, a stamp is put on the permit informing the visitor about the date on which his visa expires and he is directed to leave India by that date.

He is warned that failing to do so he will be liable to prosecution under the Foreigners Act.

There is a general feeling among visitors, from either side, that there is a lack of humanitarian approach to the issue by their governments and in the words of a Pakistani travelling with me put it, it appeared that the main objective of the diplomatic missions of the two countries, their immigration and customs officials and police personnel was to make it as difficult and unbearable as possible for people of divided families to meet their relatives.