Ministry of Tourism to have Russian interface by June end to help tourists from SCO nations: Swaraj

India's Ministry of Tourism website would have a Russian interface by the end of next month and a 24x7 tourist helpline in Russian language for the ease of tourists from the SCO countries, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj announced Wednesday.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

India was an observer at the SCO since 2005 and has generally participated in the ministerial-level meetings of the grouping which focus mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian region. India and Pakistan were granted the SCO membership in 2017.

Addressing the meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Council of Foreign Ministers here in the Kyrgyz capital, Swaraj said it is her firm belief that people-to-people contacts play a major role in strengthening the relations between nations.

"Tourism is one such catalyst. We can actively cooperate to promote it. We are sincerely committed to the implementation of the SCO Joint Action Plan for the development of cooperation in the field of tourism for 2019-2020," Swaraj said.

She said the Ministry of Tourism website would have a Russian interface by June end and a 24x7 tourist helpline in Russian language for the ease of tourists from the SCO countries.

Most of the SCO nations are Russian speaking.

"Our e-tourist visa services are available for most of the SCO countries," Swaraj said.