Entry Permits into North East Bloc States

beesakopie

Folks,

Have been going thru this board and I believe everyone requires info on the various permits in force in India. The following states in the NorhEast are governed by entry permits :

1. Arunachal Pradesh - Reason : Chinese claim on territory.
2. Manipur - Reason : Law and Order Situation - Insurgency by some rebel groups who advocate secession from India.
3. Nagaland : Reason : As with Manipur
4. Mizoram : Reason : The Mizo accord (1986) that ended insurgency in the state, enshrines the state as a protected area. This is THE only state in India that has a 100% tribal government and where tribal customary law precedes in ALL areas over Indian law.

Please note that for the other three states in the NE Bloc, viz. Assam, Tripura and Meghalaya, there is no requirement for any permit whatsoever.

(The following info is given with the idea that one is proceeding to these areas as a tourist - for work / missionary quotas, things are very different)

1. The RESTRICTED AREA PERMIT

This permit concerns only those who do not hold an Indian Passport. These permits are available from all Indian Embassies. Please ask for your permit in your country of origin. Once in India, it can only be given after authorisation from the Home Ministry - which means that it is going to take VERY long (if at all authorised). Once in India, you will require to contact the nearest FRRO who will guide you on what to do.

The correct format is to travel in a group of minimum 4 people. ONLY CERTAIN TOURIST ROUTES /PLACES are permitted. It is best to approach a travel agency to make this permit for you (because of the high number of refusals)

Individual tourists are not given permits.

A. Arunachal Pradesh : Itanagar, Ziro, Along, Pasighat, Miao, Namdapha and Sujesa (Puki) Bhalukpong. 10 days maximum

B. Manipur : Loktak Lake, Imphal, Moirang INA Memorial, Keibul Deer Sanctuary and Waithe Lake. 6 days maximum allowed. Only approach is Calcutta - Imphal by air.

C. Mizoram: Vairangte, Thingdawl and Aizawl. 10 days maximum allowed. Going south of Aizawl is not allowed.

D. Nagaland: Dimapur - Kohima Town on NH39 and all places in between National Highway No. 39 enroute to Kohima Town, Dzuku Valley, Japfu, some of Mokukchong district and Wokha District. Certain areas like Mon, Tuensang, zunheboto are not allowed.

2. THE INNER LINE PERMIT (ILP)

These are aimed at the Indian tourist. (anyone residing outside these four states above). The Temporary ILP is typically provided for a period of 15 days and can be extended for a period of 1 month. In case you would like to do a longer stay, you will need the "normal" ILP which is given for 6 months and is renewable.
Usually, a temporary ILP is provided on arrival in anyone of the airports in these states :
1. Mizoram : Lengpui Airport
2. Nagaland : Dimpaur Airport
3. Manipur : Imphal Airport

Arunachal does not have an airport -(helicopter services only to Itanagar by Pavan Hans) so a permit is required in advance (assuming that you will access from Guwahati / Tezpur)

It is thus BEST to fly to these states. Also the law and order situation in the NorthEast dictate that its best to take a flight in and another flight out...(trust me, this comes from someone who has lived there for over 20 years!!!)

The people to contact (in case you would like your permit before you get there or if you are going to Arunachal or if you would like to stay for an extended period of time - over one month) you need to contact the various state government representatives (eg: Arunachal House, Manipur House, Mizoram House, Nagaland House) in different states.

Am providing the following links for futher reading :

1. Arunachal Tourism : http://www.arunachaltourism.com
2. Manipur Tourism : Try this website - www.epao.net which is an electronic portal for Manipuri's and has travel sections.
3. Mizoram Tourism : http://mizotourism.nic.in
4. Nagaland Tourism : Try these two sites: www.kuknalim.com and www.akasworld.com which are both websites run by Naga people and have tourism sections.

Cheers! and have a safe holiday.

PS: I shall be visiting Mizoram in Jan 2008 for a few days. Shall definitely put up a travelog here.

beesakopie

Editing Note: For the Restricted Area Permit, (concerning foreign passport holders only), information on how to procure them is still unreliable and sketchy. On analysis, the "Official" info seems to be contradictory.

Thus, it may be best to contact a Travel Agency to obtain this permit. The agency would also have the latest information on which tourist routes are open.

link2hs

Hey,

That was nice info on NE India......I have just been to Nagaland and have few friends from there.....

One of the things that you mentioned about Nagaland was that MON district (and few other districts cannot be visited by foreign nationals) but it's not like that....because my friend hosted people from Australia and Japan in Mon District and they were out there on legal permit.

In March the Australian guy even entered with 2 more people in MON District again (normally 4 foreigners are required to enter together, but if one takes approval from "Ministry of Home Affairs" then even less than 4 can enter)...though that’s different that I had to apply for these guys at the Ministry one month in advance and had to call them every week to check on the status (I have heard travel agents get it done in quicker time)

HS

happyorchid2

Hello! Help!

We are in Chennai - heading to Kolkutta by land - then flying up to Nagaland or the furthest point possible . We want to travel to back by land from Arunchal Pradesh , Nagaland , Assam, Sikkum and have to leave the country (To Nepal) by June 2nd, 2008. We have been traveling for 5 years and are excited about visiting the NE states of India.

We are so confused - HOW DO WE GET A PERMIT FOR NAGALAND AND ARUNCHAL PRADESH? We are a couple, in our 50's, on a 25 year trip..
We understand a couple can get a permit for Nagaland but it takes 4 for Arunchal Pradesh?
Can we get a permit in Chennai - Kolkutta - Assam? We have heard YES to all three places but is this recent info? Does it take only several days to get the permit? We don't have much time.

Is there a reliable agency that will secure the permits for a low fee - not outrageous fees?

We always travel independently - public bus, etc. Is that possible and what are MUST SEE places in these 3 NE states??

PLEASE, PLEASE HELP WITH ANY INFORMATION.

THANK YOU SO MUCH! We will keep checking our email.

Nancy & Joseph - Hawaii
www.worldglobetrotters.com

flyingstars

You can get the permits in the respective embassies in Kolkata or in Assam itself. It takes only 2-3 days to get the permit. But they issue the permits in person only, so you have to collect it yourself.

Since public transport in NE is not so good you will get public buses in only some of the places.

The must see places in Arunachal are Tawang, Bomdila, Bhalukpong. In Assam you can visit Guwahati, Sibsagar, Kaziranga & in Nagaland, Kohima is a very beautiful place.


Feel free to contact me for any other info.

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flyingstars India Travel Blog

lemmers

can anyone else confirm that a nagaland permit can be obtained in kolkata in 2/3 days