By IANS
Kochi : There has been a spurt in the number of visa applications to Britain since the opening of the Visa Facilitation Service (VFS) centre in Kochi in May 2003.
The office of the British Deputy High Commission in Chennai said it has experienced significant yearly growth in demand for visas since the VFS operation opened in Kochi. The high commission processed 18,170 applications from Kerala in 2005 and 19,877 in 2006.
"The growing number of applications from the southern region demonstrates that an increasing number of customers are finding the process easier and quicker," Kevin Woods, head of the Visa Department at the British Deputy High Commission, said Saturday.
VFS is the British High Commission's commercial partner and operates British visa application centres on behalf of the four visa departments in India, for customers to submit visa applications to travel to Britain.
All applications from Kerala and other southern states are assessed at the British Deputy High Commission in Chennai.
Local reports said that the spurt in the number of visa applications from Kerala is due to an increasing number of nurses and students intending to go to Britain from Kerala.