India has reduced registration fee for Hindus and other minorities from Pakistan and two other countries, making it easier and financially affordable to become citizens, reported the Times of India.
The registration fee was Rs 15,000, but has now been reduced to Rs 100. The new rules will be applicable to minority communities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, said a notification by India’s Home Ministry.
The change in rules would also make it possible for minority members from neighbouring countries to take an oath of allegiance as an Indian citizen in the presence of Indian government officials.
The fee for minority community members from other countries will be Rs 10,000 of registered in India and Rs 15,000 if registered elsewhere.
The changes were made by amending various provisions in Citizenship Rules 2009, added ToI.
A member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Dr Ramesh Kumar Vankwani had earlier revealed in the National Assembly that around 5,000 Hindus migrated from Pakistan to India every year.
New Delhi had last year announced that Bangladeshis and Pakistanis belonging to minority communities there, who had entered India legally before December 31, 2014, could stay in the country, even if their documents had lapsed.
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