Hundreds, if not a couple thousand as predicted, gathered in downtown Delhi near Connaught Place to march for...pride! So refreshing to see the outpouring from the expected and not-so-expected sectors of an overwhelmingly conservative society. The march went on without a hitch, and people gathered on either side to watch the spectacle. I am humbled by the courage of those brave enough to be open and out in India, a country that can at times seem mind-numbingly rigid.
I have been traveling back and forth between India and the US since 2003 on a Tourist Visa, but the process(es) surrounding an employment visa are much more complicated. Hope this helps some of you.
Step 1: Obtaining a Visa from the Indian Embassy
Indian Consulates/Embassies do not process visas themselves - they outsource the process to a company called Travisa. Don't deal with the the Embassy at all, go to this website for a list of things you will need for an application: Travisa
There you will find details for all of the following needed articles:
Passport valid up to 6 months with at least 2 empty pages
India Visa Application Form (download from the website)
2 recent passport photos (2" x 2")
Proof of residential address in the US (official letter or copy of DL)
Copy of Birth Certificate
Appointment Letter (company should provide this)
Contract (company should provide this)
Resume
Company/Organization Registration with Indian govt.
Tax Liability Letter (company should provide this)
Justification Letter (company should provide this)
Either send this all in the mail directly to Travisa, or go in person to one of their offices.
Step 2: Registering with the FRRO (done on arrival)
You must register and get FRRO approval if your Employment Visa is valid for more than 180 days (no matter how long your stay may be). If you do not get this, you will not be able to leave the country (you will have to obtain an exit visa). You must register within 14 days of arrival or you will be fined Rs.1,300/-. If you are getting paid and need to set up a bank account in India, you will need an FRRO form regardless of your length of stay. The items needed for this document can be found here: FRRO
There you will find that you need the following:
Application form (found on the website or at the office - you will need 3 copies and you mustprint them out on green paper!)
Photocopy of your passport and visa
4 passport photographs (note: bring your own glue to attach them, the office will probably be out and you will have to leave to buy a glue stick and lose your place in the line)
Details of residence in India (note: this has to be official, and if it is a lease you will need a copy of your landlord's photo id with a signature to corroborate the signature on the lease)
HIV test from WHO recognized organization if you are staying longer than 1 year (ages 15-60)
Terms and conditions of appointments and copies of contracts and agreements (originals and copies)
Undertaking from the concerned Indian company (template provided, you will need original with a stamp and signature on company letterhead)
If you are setting up a bank account, ICIC and ING have the lowest fares in terms of transferring money from Indian to US accounts. I hope this helps someone out there have an easier time than I did, get your company to help you!
Delhi welcomed me back on a warm, balmy October 2nd, the day of Gandhi's birthday. I left my friend's apartment in good spirits, with parrots, crows, kites and pigeons adding to the cacophony of fruit vendors and rickshaws. We grabbed some eggs in the A Block market of Defense Colony, gently reminding me that I can enjoy the comforts of a good cappuccino with scrambled eggs and potatoes here on the other side of the planet. The culture shock was abated for the moment, and we left the market only to glide effortlessly through the city where my friend would drop me off at Gandhi's place of samadhi (where his body was displayed to the masses and immolated). Was this Delhi??? With a full belly of Western food, absolutely not one beggar or hovel beneath the new massive Delhi Metro platforms that curve throughout the city, and no traffic, I figured I must still be on the plane, snoring away in Melatonin-induced slumbers. Where were the people? Where was the traffic? Where were the poor?
The most obvious answer to the question of traffic is that it was Gandhi's birthday, a national holiday emptying the streets of their usual gridlock as most shops and businesses were closed. Another possible answer of is that the Commonwealth Games begin today, where athletes from around the world will compete for a week after four years of preparation and implementation of the "Beautification Plan" that has disrupted the lives of most Delhi residents in one way or another. I have to admit that the city looked clean, the potted plants lining the center divides more appealing than slums with women and small children selling cigarettes and weaving through traffic, and the metro is impressive - it beats the BART by a long mile. But people don't just evaporate, all the fragile lives hanging in perilous balance between two screaming and choked lanes of insane traffic, and well-named plans often have sinister faces: especially for sporting events in developing countries. This smacked of Indira Gandhi's slum removal in the late seventies (here) so I decided to poke around.
On reading a little about it, the beautification project can be seen as an incredible boon to the city and national pride, moving it out of sludge-swamped poverty (here) or as a simple mockery (here) and slap in the face to those who have run homeless programs on minimal budgets for years (here). I put forth the argument that the Delhi Metro cut down traffic and it's construction provided many with jobs (now them you do see, everywhere), but my friend quickly told me that in 2 weeks there will be about 100,000 migrant workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar without jobs and crime will definitely be a problem. He told me there is a mass removal plan in place already once the games are over, so I'll keep you posted on that situation. In any case, I'll let you decide for yourself what to make of the new New Delhi and its Commonwealth Games (Indians love to speculate and argue from all angles, proceed at your own peril!) but as our car zipped effortlessly past the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters I saw them...the dispossessed and downtrodden, all shacked up as they always have been but shoved out of view a block off the expressway in an appropriately ironic locale.
With all these thoughts of beautification on my mind, I approached the place of Gandhi's final rest, wondering if I would have to battle hordes there to pay their dues to the "Father of the Nation." Gandhi is a contentious figure to this day in India (as I said, Indians love to argue) but I was still surprised by the tiny stream of mostly peasant looking pilgrims coming to pay their respects. I entered the area along a heavily guarded street with gun-toting police (the games have led to an increase in security) grabbed a handful of marigolds and laid them on the stone that held his tiny body in 1948. I then retraced my steps and made my way to the National Gandhi Museum to view the relics of this modern-day saint - from his wooden sandals to the blood-stained dhoti he wore when he was shot by a Hindu fundamentalist. Then I reentered the empty streets, filled with armed guards and not traffic, potted plants and not beggars, and marveled at the complexity of history, this place, and its unending approaches to its unending problems. Back in Delhi and summarily confused.
Critical Mass starts at 4pm at the Obelisk the first Sunday of every month. It's the most fun you could possibly have on a Sunday afternoon, come join the cause!
Botanical Gardens off Plaza Italia (Subte D Line). A beautiful park in the middle of the city - one of many - with small glass and iron green houses, sectioned off seed depositories and arboretums, turn of the century brick government park buildings, and well-labeled flora in all directions.
San Telmo Sunday Market. The antique stores along Defensa are really fun to dig through, and there are hundreds of people crammed along the cobblestone streets between the gorgeous restored buildings for a good 10-15 blocks. Everything from upscale stores, modern boutiques, street vendors, and just plain fun antiquing, flea market style. Touristy but great, make sure you duck into the covered market off the main street and get a spinach ricotta crepe.
Parks. Go to any park in the city after 5pm and bring Mate. Enough said.
Proa. Beautiful contemporary art museum in La Boca. The shows are interesting and the architecture alone is worth going. Nice rooftop bar overlooking the river, and a great artist library that can suck you in for hours.
Malba. Interesting collection, great Wilfredo Lam and Andy Warhol shows while I was there.
878 (Ocho Siete Ocho) whiskey bar. Although 878 is known for it's near 100 types of different whiskey, the ambiance of the place was by far our favorite. There is the red-lit bar, exposed brick walls on all sides, leather couch seating lounge off to the side, and tables for parties looking to partake in the delicious looking food. Drinks are really good and go for about US$5. The only problem is that there is no dance floor to accompany the continual great tunes that they play.
Club Social, San Telmo. Great drinks, awesome friendly staff, and really good sushi and dinners.
Post Bar. Run of the mill drinks, but great stencils and graffiti on the walls inside and out. On Thursdays they have free pizza with beer on their super-rad rooftop terrace, and there is a small print gallery in the back.
Club Konnex - La Bomba is a 14 piece drum set that plays here each Monday, and the club is in a huge converted warehouse space in Palermo that puts on various shows. Think Maritime (back in the good days). Best place to dance on Monday nights from 8-10pm.
Vegetarian Restaurants (Growing phenomenon in this meat-happy city):
Artemisia - the best (mostly) vegetarian restaurant for affordable prices. Great ambiance, get the Mediterranean starter plate. Love the paper bag menus.
Bio - Delicious, French countryside (clean) style cafe. Good for veggies in a city of meat-eaters, and affordable too.
Casa Felix - by far the best food we've had in Buenos Aires. Diego Felix and his wife invite a small amount of people into their house for a fixed menu every week on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. They start with a tour of their backyard herb garden (with indigenous Argentine species) and the enchantment lasts through the five unbelievably delicious courses. The dinner is US$40 per person without drinks, which is a steal for the attention and flavors in store.
Streets
Thames - more of the "Palermo Hollywood" style but tons of boutiques and bars
Defensa - antiques, antiques, and beautiful buildings
Recoleta street - fun to look at the window displays in this ridiculously upscale part of town
I recently visited an incredible program supported by One World Children's Fund (OWCF) in one of the most Southern regions of the world – Patagonia.I had the honor of meeting Elena Duron, founder of PETISOS and advocate for child rights and the elimination of child labor, and her husband Gustavo Gennuso who is the president of Fundación Gente Nueva.Elena is an Ashok Fellow who has been invited to speak about this program this coming May in Norway for the International Labor Organization’s conference on eradication of child labor.She took me to two locations and showed me everything from a local dump where they provide child outreach to the after school art programs and primary, secondary, and vocational schools.
PETISOS (Prevención y Eradicación de Trabajo Inantíl S.O.S.) operates under the umbrella of Fundación Gente Nueva in order to provide services for the children that live and work in the dump in Bariloche. The town itself is beautiful, but in addition to sweeping mountain views and famous chocolate manufacturers, Bariloche has many unseen neighborhoods that consist of people living in the garbage and using their children as laborers in attempt to make ends meet.They live in bare-bone housing in the least desirable spot in town – a bluff surrounding the dump that is unprotected from icy winds and that gets waist-high snowfall for a good part of the year.Gente Nueva decided to address this enormous disparity by beginning an outreach program (PETISOS) that begins with child rehabilitation and eventually reaches further to include the families as well.
PETISOS currently has 200 active students from 79 different families that benefit directly from its services (about another 200 children are benefiting indirectly through participation in after school programs).While Gente Nueva addresses the larger issues of quality education and community services in the region, PETISOS reaches out to those students who are socially and culturally outcast from the children living more stable lives.Most of these children are illiterate at an advanced age, with little to no formal primary or secondary schooling, and all of them work in some sort of capacity.The most common (and high risk) jobs are trash collection, working on construction sites, selling drugs, and in some cases, child prostitution.PETISOS has extensive one-on-one services for these children, with psychological counseling, a team of coaches that develops a “personal plan” for each child, vocational training, and even job placement for those who graduate from the program.From the first batch of 30 graduates, Elena was able to find 30 jobs in hotels, supermarkets, and restaurants in town – 100% successful placement of former child laborers!
The younger children attend the primary and secondary schools with everybody else – we visited a primary school of 400 that educated about 50 PETISOS children.These kids have access to a wonderful community center covered in paintings of flowers and cheerful designs, where they can draw, have a snack, and even participate in an orchestra that OWCF has made possible through the purchase of instruments.Local teachers volunteer their time so the children actually have access to high quality services even though they live on the outskirts of town. PETISOS also provides classes in Excel, Word, and Office, and vocational training for those who prefer metal and wood working to computers.All of the education is completely free of charge thanks to continued funding, and PETISOS works tirelessly to remove children from compromised situations and give them a childhood.
A mere 25 hour bus ride from the bustling chaos of Buenos Aires lands you in a lakeside community (ski resort in the winter from June - September) called Bariloche. I was finally able to catch my breath and remember the larger things in life while I sat miles above sea level and away from the hectic traffic and murky coastline, perched in the ancient Andes. Ahhhh! Mountain air, miles of hikes, refugios in the mountains, and wildflowers all around have been the antidotes to the barrage of daily living in one of the biggest cities in the world. The buses that run here are plush and serve meals with red wine (vino tinto) or champagne, and the trip is well worth it. We pushed a little further into the Andean foothills to the small, hippy town of El Bolson for a couple of days which was even more relaxing and warmer. Bariloche is beautiful and kicks off the entire Patagonia route that leads south to the glaciers of Chile and Argentina. It is a ski town geared towards tourism, but further out you can wander and not see another soul for miles.
Delhi welcomed me back on a warm, balmy October 2nd, the day of Gandhi's birthday. I left my friend's apartment in good spirits, with parrots, crows, kites and pigeons adding to the cacophony of fruit vendors and rickshaws. We grabbed some eggs in the A Block market of Defense Colony, gently reminding me that I can enjoy the comforts of a good cappuccino with scrambled eggs and potatoes here on the other side of the planet. The culture shock was abated for the moment, and we left the market only to glide effortlessly through the city where my friend would drop me off at Gandhi's place of samadhi (where his body was displayed to the masses and immolated). Was this Delhi??? With a full belly of Western food, absolutely not one beggar or hovel beneath the new massive Delhi Metro platforms that curve throughout the city, and no traffic, I figured I must still be on the plane, snoring away in Melatonin-induced slumbers. Where were the people? Where was the traffic? Where were the poor?
With all these thoughts of beautification on my mind, I approached the place of Gandhi's final rest, wondering if I would have to battle hordes there to pay their dues to the "Father of the Nation." Gandhi is a contentious figure to this day in India (as I said, Indians love to argue) but I was still surprised by the tiny stream of mostly peasant looking pilgrims coming to pay their respects. I entered the area along a heavily guarded street with gun-toting police (the games have led to an increase in security) grabbed a handful of marigolds and laid them on the stone that held his tiny body in 1948. I then retraced my steps and made my way to the National Gandhi Museum to view the relics of this modern-day saint - from his wooden sandals to the blood-stained dhoti he wore when he was shot by a Hindu fundamentalist. Then I reentered the empty streets, filled with armed guards and not traffic, potted plants and not beggars, and marveled at the complexity of history, this place, and its unending approaches to its unending problems. Back in Delhi and summarily confused.
Critical Mass starts at 4pm at the Obelisk the first Sunday of every month. It's the most fun you could possibly have on a Sunday afternoon, come join the cause!
PETISOS (Prevención y Eradicación de Trabajo Inantíl S.O.S.) operates under the umbrella of Fundación Gente Nueva in order to provide services for the children that live and work in the dump in Bariloche. The town itself is beautiful, but in addition to sweeping mountain views and famous chocolate manufacturers, Bariloche has many unseen neighborhoods that consist of people living in the garbage and using their children as laborers in attempt to make ends meet. They live in bare-bone housing in the least desirable spot in town – a bluff surrounding the dump that is unprotected from icy winds and that gets waist-high snowfall for a good part of the year. Gente Nueva decided to address this enormous disparity by beginning an outreach program (PETISOS) that begins with child rehabilitation and eventually reaches further to include the families as well.
PETISOS currently has 200 active students from 79 different families that benefit directly from its services (about another 200 children are benefiting indirectly through participation in after school programs). While Gente Nueva addresses the larger issues of quality education and community services in the region, PETISOS reaches out to those students who are socially and culturally outcast from the children living more stable lives. Most of these children are illiterate at an advanced age, with little to no formal primary or secondary schooling, and all of them work in some sort of capacity. The most common (and high risk) jobs are trash collection, working on construction sites, selling drugs, and in some cases, child prostitution. PETISOS has extensive one-on-one services for these children, with psychological counseling, a team of coaches that develops a “personal plan” for each child, vocational training, and even job placement for those who graduate from the program. From the first batch of 30 graduates, Elena was able to find 30 jobs in hotels, supermarkets, and restaurants in town – 100% successful placement of former child laborers!
The younger children attend the primary and secondary schools with everybody else – we visited a primary school of 400 that educated about 50 PETISOS children. These kids have access to a wonderful community center covered in paintings of flowers and cheerful designs, where they can draw, have a snack, and even participate in an orchestra that OWCF has made possible through the purchase of instruments. Local teachers volunteer their time so the children actually have access to high quality services even though they live on the outskirts of town. PETISOS also provides classes in Excel, Word, and Office, and vocational training for those who prefer metal and wood working to computers. All of the education is completely free of charge thanks to continued funding, and PETISOS works tirelessly to remove children from compromised situations and give them a childhood.
People gather at the place where Gandhi was laid for public viewing and cremation
An appropriately dilapidated symbol for the nation's investment in Gandhi's ideas today; across the street from the Gandhi National Museum lined with armed guards. Notice the coal stack to the left of the frame.