New Delhi: The Centre has done away with the requirement of separate Prior Reference Category (PRC) clearance for foreign nationals who have already been granted security clearance through the Security Clearance Portal (SCP), officials in the ministry of home affairs (MHA) said on Wednesday.
The Union home ministry office in Delhi. (ANI)
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The move is aimed at eliminating a dual approval process for certain categories of foreign nationals whose security clearance is regulated by the MHA.
The PRC refers to a category of individuals from countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Sudan and China (for certain categories), as well as foreigners of Pakistani origin and stateless persons, who require security clearance to attend events such as conferences and sporting competitions in India. The MHA regulates the security clearance for people in the PRC list.
The SCP is a centralised web application for streamlining the security clearances for specific categories handled by the MHA. Only ministries and government departments which require security clearance for foreign nationals for an event can apply on this portal.
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“Certain amendments have been made in the existing Visa Manual recently, including dispensing with the requirement of separate PRC clearance for foreign nationals who have been granted security clearance on SCP portal. This removes the dual process,” said a ministry official, requesting anonymity.
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“Certain amendments have been made in the existing Visa Manual recently, including dispensing with the requirement of separate PRC clearance for foreign nationals who have been granted security clearance on SCP portal. This removes the dual process,” said a ministry official, requesting anonymity.
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The official added that powers relating to the extension or conversion of visas and other visa-related services that were not specifically covered in the Visa Manual earlier have now been incorporated into it.
“The provision of multiple entries on various visas granted under the e-Visa platform has also been included,” a second official said.
India currently offers e-Visas to nationals of 172 countries.
Neeraj Chauhan is a senior journalist with Hindustan Times and an investigative reporter specialising in national security, terrorism, organised crime, narcotics, corruption, financial crime and complex investigations. With over 21 years of experience across Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Indian Express and The Pioneer, he has built deep expertise in India’s internal security and law-enforcement landscape. Neeraj has extensively covered India’s principal investigative, intelligence and security agencies, including the NIA, CBI, ED, IB, R&AW, MHA and other central security forces. His work has included deeply reported investigations into terrorism, terror financing, cross-border crime, narcotics trafficking, cybercrime, financial fraud and political and corporate corruption. He has reported on some of the most significant terror attacks and security developments in India over the past two decades, including the Delhi serial blasts, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2019 Pulwama terror attack and the recent Pahalgam attack. His reporting has also chronicled the rise and decline of the Indian Mujahideen, the activities and subsequent crackdown on the Popular Front of India (PFI), Islamist extremist networks, the conflict in Jammu and Kashmir, insurgencies in the Northeast and Maoist violence. Some of Neeraj’s major breaking stories are in Aryan Khan drug case, Sushant Singh Rajput suicide, interception of a 3,000-kg Afghan heroin consignment worth about ₹21,000 crore at Mundra port, Sri Lanka easter bombings, Aarushi-Hemraj murders in Noida, 2G scam, coal block allocation scam, AgustWestland VVIP chopper deal and major bank frauds and extradition cases involving Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya. His reporting is marked by an ability to cultivate sources, analyse confidential and complex documents, and follow investigations over several years—from the initial breakthrough to chargesheets, trials and international legal proceedings. He specialises in making complicated security and investigative developments accessible while examining their wider implications for governance and public policy. A Chevening South Asia Journalism Programme Fellow at the University of Westminster, Neeraj also spent time at the Financial Times as part of the fellowship. He was also a Robert Bosch Media Ambassadors India-Germany Fellow, studying at the University of Tübingen and working with Der Tagesspiegel in Berlin. He has previously taught investigative journalism and crime reporting as a guest faculty member at the Times School of Journalism. Over more than two decades, Neeraj has established himself as an authoritative voice on India’s national security and investigative landscape, with his reporting closely followed by officials, investigators, lawyers, policymakers and readers seeking insight into some of the country’s most complex and consequential developments.
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Home/India News/MHA updates visa manual, does away with dual approval process
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