SPECIAL REPORT If you want to see the real India, get out of Delhi. This touristy cliché is being imbibed by an increasing number of foreign VVIPs arriving in the capital. And has caused much anxiety in the Ministry of External Affairs, keeping officials on their toes to ensure there are no last-minute glitches or faux pas when a foreign visitor goes to the state capitals.
For the next two months, while the rest of the government machinery will be in full swing for the elections, the MEA’s protocol division will have a lean season as the last foreign visitors leave Delhi on Friday. With more time on hand, about 60-70 officials from all state governments will gather at the MEA’s headquarters at Jawaharlal Nehru Bhawan for a quick three-day course on protocol matters next week.
“Usually, for each and every thing, the states always contact us. There will always, inevitably, be situations in every visit that you have not anticipated. It is the job of the protocol officer to deal with the unexpected turn of events with a cool head,” a senior MEA official said.
Outside the capital, the most popular city with overseas leaders is certainly Mumbai, India’s commercial capital. However, the southern cities of Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai are now also drawing attention. Of course, Taj Mahal in Agra is in its own special category, especially with first-time visitors making a beeline for the marble mausoleum.
Then there are the religious hotspots. Nearly all diplomats from South East Asian countries do try to squeeze in a trip to Bodh Gaya. For leaders from South Asia, Ajmer Sharif and Tirupati are top most on their must-see list.
Before any foreign visit, the state governments get a ‘package’ of instructions from MEA. “We finalise all meetings and events, whether with the governors or chief ministers. It is then presented as a package which the state has to then implement,” said the official.
To nobody’s surprise, perhaps the biggest headache for protocol officers is to keep up with the schedule. It is a difficult task with talkative Indian leaders ever so keen to expound on discussions with visiting dignitaries.
In fact, one of the skills that will be explained to protocol officers at the workshop is how to ‘break up’ a meeting. The message to the host to not detain his foreign guest anymore has to be subtly conveyed, usually through their closest aides with whom the leader has the “most comfort level”.
“State protocol officers would know how to do it in their own system. They would know instinctively which officer is close to the governor of Tamil Nadu,” noted the official.
Of course, knowing when to get the leaders to move on is also crucial. “You can’t naturally break in if they have just begun a discussion on Afghanistan, even though it may be past the time,” said the official.
One of the frequent queries that state governments send to MEA is the order of precedence. “Even small things like who will be on the dais or speaking order for local officials or politicians is often referred to us for clarification,” said the official. Sometimes, the visitor themselves may not want to keep an appointment with an Indian leader, which then has to be resolved by conveying to the foreign team that schedule is sacrosanct.
“We don’t have any issues with visits from the developed world who are very professional in meeting their commitments. But, in other parts of the world, sometimes the countries overreach in committing to meet many Indian leaders during the visit of advanced teams, but then try to wriggle out once the visitor is in India. We have to tell them that this is not negotiable, but without creating any friction,” said the official.
While foreign visits are nerve-wrecking, there is a more mundane day-to-day aspect that the state governments have to deal with on the diplomatic front—managing the privileges and immunities of consulates. Mumbai has the highest number of consulates at 50, followed by Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad that have about 20 each. Kolkata also has a small consulate community.
After the Devyani Khobragade affair, there has been a greater awareness, even within MEA, to ensure strict reciprocity on diplomatic privileges. “The time when India used to open doors for other countries, without asking anything in return is over. During the two days, we will be reaffirming the whole message of strict reciprocity,” said a senior Indian diplomat.
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