Here’s to a welcome Chinese invasion!

Was Prime Minister Narendra Modi prompted to extend the e-visa facility to Chinese visitors after learning about the windfall revenues Paris, Nice and Monaco received when 6,400 of them descended on the cities for an all-expensespaid jamboree last week courtesy their billionaire employer? Clearly, the Prime Minister’s sudden announcement comes not a moment too soon as there is news that another Chinese company is sending 12,700 of its workers for a similar outing to Thailand this month.

Considering India issued a total of just 19,290 electronic travel authorisations ( ETA) between January and September 2014 to tourists from the expanded list of 44 countries eligible for the facility, the potential for just a few generous Chinese billionaires to boost those numbers sky-high is immense.

The effect of a Chinese (tourist) invasion on India’s modest total tourist arrival figure — 6.97 million in 2014 — would be game-changing. Outbound tourism from China is slated to swamp the world by 2019, with 174 million of them expected to travel abroad and spend $264 billion, up from the 109 million who have already shelled out $164 billion in 2014. India’s Buddhist sites will be a prime attraction, of course, but will the Chinese hordes be swayed by such glocal delights as Gobi Manchurian too?