Under the Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order, 1958, all areas falling between the ‘Inner line’ and the “International Border of the State” have been declared as Protected Area. Currently, Protected Areas are located in the following States: whole of Arunachal Pradesh; parts of Himachal Pradesh; parts of Jammu and Kashmir; parts of Rajasthan and whole of Sikkim (partly in Protected Area and partly in Restricted Area.) Further, under the Foreigners (Restricted Areas) Order, 1963, the following areas have been declared as ‘Restricted Areas: Andaman & Nicobar and part of Sikkim.

A foreigner is not normally allowed to visit a Protected/Restricted Area unless it is established to the satisfaction of the government, that there are extraordinary reasons to justify such a visit. Every foreigner, except a citizen of Bhutan, who desires to enter and stay in a Protected or Restricted Area, is required to obtain a special permit from a competent authority delegated with powers to issue such a special permit to a foreigner. In cases where the powers have not been delegated to any subordinate authority by the Government of India, the application for special permit should be referred to the Ministry of Home Affairs for prior approval.

Special Permission for entry by Indians. (i) Inner Line Permit (ILP) regulates visit of Indians to states where ILP regime is prevalent under Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation, 1873. In terms of of Section 2 of the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulations, 1873, the Inner Line Permit system is prevalent in the three North Eastern States, namely, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland. Citizens of other states require ILP for visiting these three states.

With a view to promote tourism, some protected/restricted areas, notified by the Government of India from time to time, can be visited by foreign tourists, either in groups, or as a couple in the case of a husband and wife, or by individuals, after obtaining the necessary permit from the competent authority. Powers have been delegated to various authorities to issue the special permit, without the prior approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs, to facilitate foreign tourists subject to the following exceptions:

Citizens of Afghanistan, China and Pakistan and foreign nationals of Pakistani origin shall not be issued a special permit without the prior approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs, according to R.P.N. Singh, Minister of State for Home Affairs.