Indian nationals travelling to Ladakh will no longer have to secure an inner line permit. In a bid to welcome tourists, the administration of the Union Territory has now done away with the mandatory permit for entry into the notified protected areas in the interior part of the Union Territory. The Ladakh Home Department has also said that ‘residents of the protected area’ can visit other protected areas ‘without any permit’.
The inner line permit is a document that is required to enter ‘protected’ areas in several states and union territories. Simply put, the document (obtained for a fee) allows Indian citizens to visit or stay in such states. While domestic travellers to Ladakh no longer require such a permit, the system remains in force for several of the north-eastern states. An ILP can be obtained online as well as offline, and outlines the dates of travel and the areas the holder is permitted to access.
Visitors to places such as the Khardung La and Nubra Valley would have…