Foreign students under scanner

FOREIGN nationals in Pune have come under the police scanner in the wake of the 26/11 terror strikes in Mumbai. Pune houses close to 19,000 foreign nationals, and about 80 per cent of them are students.

The Foreign Registration Department is preparing a detailed and updated computerised list of foreign nationals living in Pune which will be ready by January 26. The police has already deported 194 students in the last few months.

Pune's Special Branch, which handles passport verification, has reduced the verification period to just seven days. As a result, the number of pending passport applications from 15,000 to just 1,500.
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Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Branch) Ravindra Sengaonkar, said that the police has initiated action against foreign students found to be overstaying after their visas had expired. "After policemen visited the places to crosscheck with available records, some more students have been found to be overstaying in the country," he said.

Some foreign students involved in anti-social activities are immediately served with a 'Leave India' notice or directly deported under the provisions of law.
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In some cases foreign students who are under trial in serious crimes are given a visa extension.

Students, mostly from Iran, Yemen, Afghanistan, Oman, Korea and Bahrain, come to the city for education. It is found that many foreign students just apply for short English courses before pursuing higher studies.

It was this drive that forced foreign students to approach the Foreign Registration Department to file for a visa extension application.