Myanmar to offer visa on arrival for Indian tourists: President Kovind

President Kovind is on a five-day visit to the country

In a bid to boost people-to-people relations with India, Myanmar will provide visa-on-arrival for Indian tourists, President Ram Nath Kovind said Tuesday as he began his five-day visit to the country.

President Kovind's visit to Myanmar will continue India's high-level engagements with Myanmar under the rubric of 'Act East Policy' and 'Neighbourhood First Policy'.

"Coinciding with President Kovind's visit, and to further people-to-people relations, Myanmar has also announced a visa-on-arrival facility for Indian tourists entering the country through the international airports of Nay Pyi Taw, Yangon and Mandalay," the president's office tweeted.

The President said that residents of India's Northeast region have particularly welcomed and are beginning to reap the benefits of the Land-border Crossing Agreement concluded recently.

The landmark Land Border Crossing Agreement between India and Myanmar, signed on May 11, 2018, was brought into effect in August with the simultaneous opening of international entry-exit checkpoints at the Tamu-Moreh and the Rihkhawdar-Zowkhawtar border between the two nations.

"They look forward to the early conclusion of the Motor Vehicles Agreement," Kovind said.

Several agreements are expected to be signed during the President's visit which comes amid China's foray into the southeast Asian country with which it has signed a mega port deal.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Myanmar last year, while Myanmar's State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visited India in January for the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit.