Those who know me or follow me on Twitter have heard all about my bizarre and extended difficulty at leaving India. For those who don’t, or who want to get ‘reacquainted with the facts’ as Gandhiji would say, here’s a quick summary (feel free to skim over, this isn’t the important bit):
1) I was asked to leave India because my salary is too low. The Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) in Thiruvananthapuram told me that I had to get out before July 5, which was when my final visa extension would expire.
2) However, in two and a half years here I’ve never received an actual physical stamp of extension from Delhi, so Immigration rejected me at Mumbai airport and scolded me for not having an exit permit. (The FRRO had told me that I didn’t need anything to leave.)
3) I returned to Kerala to get the exit permit, which I was assured would be ready by Friday 8th July (yesterday); it wasn’t, of course. This meant rebooking my flight a second time. The FRRO insists to me the exit permit will be ready on Monday 11th; I’ll take a train to Mumbai on Tuesday 12th and fly on Wednesday 13th, hopefully to be in NZ Thursday 14th.
4) [I’ll leave this space blank for whatever goes wrong in the coming days. There will surely be something.]
(I acknowledge that it is ultimately my fault that I’m in this mess, because if I’d done more research back at step (1) I’d have known of the need for an exit permit. I’ve lost upwards of Rs 30,000 as a result, which was all the money I’d saved for my intended one-month holiday in New Zealand (most of which would go towards a tour of the country to visit family), so when I get back to NZ it will be for an indefinite period of time and I will be looking for work straight away.)
Okay. Those are the facts. What I want to talk about now are the implications I derive from this saga about where I am or am not welcome.
In India, a key philosophy is that ‘the guest is God’ – or, in other words, a visitor is a blessing and should be treated as such. Whenever I visit somebody’s home, all the family members present will be called to come and welcome me. I’ll be seated in the most comfortable chair in the living room and someone will bring tea and a selection of snacks (or, if it’s around lunch or dinner, a small meal). The TV will be switched on so that I have something to watch, if I so wish, and to make me feel at home (I don’t own a TV but okay, the gesture is sweet). Until the time I leave, the house’s entire focus will be on me. If a child sleeping in another room wakes up and starts crying, someone will quickly go and return with them, missing only a few seconds of doting on me, the guest.
This literal sequence of events has happened many times over during my three years in India. Apart from that, I am very fortunate in that I know many wonderful people in India (again, both in person and on Twitter) who have made me feel extremely welcome here. I’ve even felt at times like I belong – which is ideally how it should be. We’re all human, after all.
The past month or so, however, has been a constant struggle against a system which simply does not care, and certainly makes no effort to make me feel welcome. I’m by no means saying that I deserve special treatment – and my experience is not even close to the worst it can get for a foreigner, let alone a poor farmer in Bihar – but between traditional Indian hospitality, which I so keenly feel among regular people, and the impenetrable bureaucracy of the government and its processes, there’s an enormous disconnect.
When one government worker rebukes me loudly and openly for following the instructions of another government worker – which is what happened at the airport – I certainly don’t feel welcome, even as I was being told I couldn’t leave. When one government worker rebukes me for following his own instructions – which is what happened the moment I got back to the Trivandrum FRRO – I feel absolutely insane, like an insignificant insect who keeps knocking on the door of the system, thinking ‘this time they’ll listen’. The FRRO then went on to lie to me about what he would do to help me, just to get me out of his office; once my planned exit permit fell through yesterday, he finally adopted a remorseful and guilty tone, though of course he didn’t apologise.
I still take responsibility for not getting things done the right way at the start, but all this just made me think that there’s only one place where I am truly welcome, and that’s New Zealand. Why? Because I hold a New Zealand passport. Most of my family is there, and they do accept and support me wonderfully, but the passport is the key here. After all, there are kind and genuine people everywhere, and thus potential for feeling a sense of belonging wherever you go, but the only order of law that will serve my interests is that of New Zealand.
Naturally, every single one of my calls to the New Zealand Consulate in Mumbai was answered respectfully and with great care, including several times by the Consul General himself. Concurrently, I spent three days calling the Trivandrum FRRO while I was in Mumbai but he rejected the call or let it ring every single time; I had to travel 2000 kilometres over land just to speak with him. This now does not surprise me. He is part of a system which is neither set up to look after nor care for me, let alone make me feel welcome.
So, back to New Zealand I go, unsure of my next move. I had intended to come back to India at the end of July – I even booked a return ticket – but that is now impossible for a number of reasons both financial and temporal. New Zealand is my legal home and I can live there largely free of the hassles of bureaucracy, so it makes sense to be there while I get back on my feet.
The most distressing implication, for me, is that in today’s world one simply cannot expect to feel automatically welcome with one’s fellow men and women around the world. In fact, the opposite is true. In India, since the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and the David Headley scandal, the majority of people – especially government officers – are extremely suspicious of foreigners. By the sounds of things, it’s the same everywhere. Foreigners have plenty of trouble trying to enter or remain in the United States, in Europe, and in New Zealand. The fallacy that outsiders pose the greatest threat to a nation’s security has become rule of law.
I’ve made a number of deep and strong human connections in India, connections that I hope will last for a very long time, and I have in many ways felt at home here. Those connections, those people, are a home of sorts. (I’ve been thinking a lot about what ‘home’ is lately, especially since I was asked to leave India; am working on a long-form post about it.)
Those connections will have to wait, though, or at least remain strong across continents until I’m in a position to wade through the bureaucracy once again. I can’t help feeling that there must be some way that we could all move freely, as if each of us were a citizen of the world rather than a particular nation. But it would require everyone to behave with the collective good, the best interests of our species, at heart. That is hugely idealistic and unrealistic to begin with; now that the system is set up to engender suspicion of foreigners and promote the idea of ‘us versus them’, such a genuine global community is unforeseeable.
It’s a bitter pill to swallow, especially when I know that in a place like in India, the prevailing traditional ideology was to be welcoming. I suppose I’m lucky that I’ve been able to experience its influence with so many great people. More than anything, those people and experiences drive me to overcome the system, to jump through its hoops and fight it if necessary, just so I can spend an extra minute in their company.
Jdanspsa Wyksui 
Wow. I don’t think there is anything that I can really say that will make you feel better. It’s insanity that people can hide behind a phone or blame someone else’s instructions. I wish there was something that I could say that would help. I wish you luck with everything and I’m sure NZ will welcome you back, cold weather and all.
Sorry to read about all the troubles you have been facing. It is remarkable you can keep looking at it so philosophically and could even write about it while going through it without getting insane. This is bureaucracy, the Indian bureaucracy. I wonder how did you miss this in your stay of 3 years in India. Do not think it is just restricted to FRRO or any such institutions that deal with foreigners. It is all prevalent, anybody who had the misfortune to get into any of the government offices to get cleared of any kind of mess one might accidentally get in would have felt the insensitivity and the parasitic embrace of the system (give me money). Just that in your case it is quite possible that bribe was not the intention ( I am being charitable).
Oh I think I recognise your story – are you the person that was mentioned in The White Indian House Wife blog?
Hey Barnaby Haszard Morris! My name is Dupree Singh, I believe you’ve seen me on the above mentioned blog too. In response to one of your comments, just for you Sir, I’ve set up the Dupree Singh blog (last night):
http://www.DupreeSingh.WordPress.com
Dupree Singh Blog Synopsis:
Mad but Never Sad Ramblings That Will Make You Laugh
“In a nutshell, this blog will help you learn how to live your life like a nutcase. Once you have learned this, simply do the opposite and you will be fine!”
I am still trying to get to grips with word press however, so it will be a while before the ramblings rumble forward. I have added you to my blog roll–you seem to have quite an extensive blog with so many postings–I will read them with pleasure at my leisure. I will set up a twitter account and follow you on that too.
I am so sorry to hear of your story about having to leave India, and the troubles you faced. It seems insane. Hypothetically speaking…if a person lost their visa, exit visa, and passport, and then went to their country’s embassy / consulate, would they be able to leave more easily?
NZ is an awesome country–great mountains and outdoor sports!
Ps I used to work with a Kiwi girl and I used to love asking her to count to six. I used to also love Googling various pictures of fish and asking her what they were. However, being Indian, I have no right to tease Kiwis about their accent – Indian accents are pure comedy in themselves–we Indians just have to open our mouths and the laughter starts–Russell Peters did a good joke about that!
Good luck dude.
It was extremely distressing to hear of your account but I do know that this is true of our lumbering and uncaring bureaucracy. I wonder where you are now in your battle. :(
Thanks Shalini – what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, etc. I am now back in New Zealand trying to get back on my feet and (eventually) back to India. :)
Hi,
Good to hear from you. I just had a brainwave and thought that maybe I should post this blog post to a friend in Delhi to see if you could be helped. Not by cutting corners or anything :) but simply and rightfully resoving your misery. Anyways good to see that I do not have to resort to it but maybe I still will send your post so that people in decision making places are aware (hopefully) of what things a simple person (aam janata) has to deal with. Also glad to hear (extremely glad in fact) that it has not put you off India and that you want to come back!!! That is extremely good! :)
Reading this as an Indian, I feel the same sense of helplessness as we do when confronted by an unseen entity which has decided outlandish rules and systems disregarding human needs. The thing that makes me wonder is- these are manned by normal human beings, who would have been great at a one-on- one interactions and would have probably welcomed you into their homes and taken care of you, but when they fall into this structure, they turn unaccountable, insensitve distant. Makes it all the more bewildering. The system is what it is and reading this, I feel frustrated. Hope you are in a better place now. Wish you the best.
I got the same situation
My visa is only 45days I can stay ,but I stay here more than two months . So I rejected by airport worker and asked me to get a certification from FRRO. I submit my materials to FRRO this Thursday and they let me wait until they inform me . I am insane too . wish your replay
Hi Minfa. All I can suggest at this point is that you keep going back to the FRRO and asking about the state of your certification, remaining polite and patient for every moment you are there. (You can get frustrated and angry once you leave, but in order to get what you want, it’s important you don’t leave a negative impression on the FRRO staff.) It’s helpful if you have any local friends who can accompany you, even just to wait with you.
Good luck, and do let me know how it goes. I know how insane it can make you feel. I’m sure you will get your certification soon.
Dear Barns , Thank you very much. I feel positive now.Yesterday , a FRRO sir came to my guesthouse to check the truely of my submitted materials, and he will submit my materials today . Maybe one week later , I can get a call from FRRO to get my exit permit . So , the only thing I can do is waiting with patient. The time is really very long , long
This is good news! Hopefully you won’t have to wait longer than a week. And yes, patience is the key.
Dear Barns, did you apply exit permit when you back to your country and how many days it took you to get you exit permit or another different ways ? I scared whether I will be arrest . And there is no sure time I need to wait , very lonely here
Yes, I had to get an exit permit from my local FRRO in Thiruvananthapuram. It took about a week after I made the application. When I arrived at the airport and showed it to the check-in staff, everything was fine and I was allowed to leave the country without any problems or further fees.
Barns , you were very smooth .You called they to ask the status of exit permit or they called you to get your exit permit after you made you application.
I called the FRRO officer daily on his mobile to ask about the status of the application after I submitted it, but he didn’t answer my calls. Eventually, he called me to tell me to come and collect.
There was really lucky for you . Just one week after you submitted application , you got the exit permit.I will try my best to ask about my exit permit status . Thank you Barns for your timely reply. Happy New Year
Dear Barns,I have one more question. Can you tell me ? You know ,the exit permit’s period of validity is 24 hours. Is it takes effect from FRRO call you or after you get the exit permit from FRRO?
Sorry Minfa, I couldn’t tell you this one. I think my exit permit was valid for a week – I flew out of India two days after I picked it up.
Barns, Thanks so much. I still wait my exit permit .Incredible
This is a bit ridiculous. Keep persevering, and if they keep pushing you away, you might want to talk to your country’s consular staff. Hang in there!
Well this is fascinating! And a little ironic, no?
Well this is fascinating. And a little ironic no?