India's tourism sector continues to play an important role in the country's economy. In a bid to further boost this sector and following the Prime Minister&rsquos meeting with the Chinese president Xi Jinping  in Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India has decided to relax the e - tourist visa rules for Chinese nationals. The two leaders met for an informal summit post which these significant announcements were made. The new visa rules have already been implemented in the Indian embassy in Beijing.

From October onwards, Chinese travellers can apply for an e-tourist visa of a 5 year validity with multiple entries. The fee for this 5 year e - visa will be USD 80. Tourists can also opt for a single-entry 30 day validity e-TV for a fee of USD 25. In addition to this, for those visiting between the months of April to June, the visa fee will be further reduced  to USD 10.

As per the current regulations, e-visas are valid only for 60 days for Chinese travellers and the visa for e-conference is valid for 30 days. Furthermore, e-medical visa, e-conference visa and one-year multiple-entry e-business visa will be issued to tourists from China as per regular norms.

Reports suggest that this move will encourage Chinese nationals to choose India as a premium destination for tourism. It has also been stated that this can enhance the people to people exchanges between the two countries.