India to partially resume visa services in Canada from Thursday

INDIA has decided to partially resume visa services in Canada from October 26 onwards, a month after they were closed down amid deteriorating diplomatic ties between both nations, the Indian High Commission in Ottawa said on Wednesday.

The services will resume for entry, business, medical and conference visas, the High Commission said in a statement.

"Further decisions, as appropriate, would be intimated based on continuing evaluation of the situation," the statement added.

Diplomatic relations between India and Canada hit rock bottom after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last month alleged in his country's Parliament India's role in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on its soil.

Subsequently, both nations asked the other side to remove a diplomat each and earlier this month, New Delhi asked Canada to recall more than 40 of its diplomats posted in the country, to maintain diplomatic parity.

India said that this was done owing to "repeated interference" in its internal affairs by Canada and to cut down a huge number of diplomatic presence of Canadian diplomats in the country.