Hyderabad: The US government’s 2018 travel advisory has cautioned its citizens and employees to avoid travelling to northern Telangana and eastern Maharashtra. The advisory stated that the US government in India has limited ability to provide emergency services to US citizens visiting rural northern Telangana (Warangal, Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Khammam) and they would need special authorisation to travel to these areas.
No reason is mentioned why northern Telangana has been red-flagged. Telangana’s police attribute it to the Naxal operations in these parts earlier, which no longer exist. The US has put India at level 2 — “exercise increased caution”.
US ready to help visitors to India
A senior police officer who was Superintendent of police in Khammam rural when the Naxal presence was strong there, said, “Northern Telangana was highly infested with Naxal activity prior to the state’s bifurcation. Especially Khammam, the Warangal-Chhattisgarh and Adilabad-Eastern Maharashtra borders, Bhadrachalam and Gadchiroli. Currently, no activity has been detected in TS, but it has been reported on the borders we share with Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.”
The US consulate in Hyderabad said its Citizen Centre at the consulate will take care of US visitors to India during their stay. The advisory said: ‘Indian authorities report that rape is one of the fastest growing crimes in India. Violent crime such as sexual assault has occurred at tourist sites and in other locations. Terrorists are active in East Central India, primarily in rural India. Armed forces may attack with little or no warning targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls and local government facilities.’
The citizen centre at the consulate helped 32-year-old John Frieser who lost all his travel documents at Kachiguda railways station by issuing him a temporary passport. The centre has also been working with the TS police with regard to the arrest of the India chairman and CEO of Amway, William S. Pinckney.
The US government’s advisory for travel to India
- Do not travel alone, particularly if you are a woman (It has a separate website for women travellers)
- Review your personal plans and remain alert to your surroundings
- Review the crime and safety reports for India
- Do not travel to Jammu and Kashmir (except the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh) due to terrorism and civil unrest.
- Or to within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border due to the potential for armed conflict.
