For those who are planning to take pre or post congress tours to other parts of India, it may make more sense to use Delhi or Mumbai as gateway cities. Please contact your travel agent or the official Destination Management Company - ICE to help you with planning your travel.

At both terminals (domestic & international) of the Hyderabad airport you will be received by welcome staff, and escorted to the transfer vehicles to go to the Conference hotels, provided we receive advance information of your arrival details. Special facilitation counters at airports at Delhi & Mumbai will also be put up to help delegates entering India via these two major gateway cities.

The international airports in the metro cities extend services ensuring that the traveller on business can continue working even during his wait for boarding an international connection, or when transferring between international flights. These facilities include restaurants, business centres, rest rooms and telephone booths. Business centres are furnished with state-of-the-art equipment including word-processors and telefax. Airports also offer tourist duty-free & handicrafts shopping, snack bars, nursery and baby care rooms, and an art gallery too for art lovers. Duty-free prices in the airport shops are very competitive, giving one good bargain on international merchandise.

Arrival & Departure Formalities

Arrival Formalities
If the visa, for stay in India, is for more than 180 days, a Registration Certificate and Residential Permit should be obtained from the nearest Foreigners' Registration Office within 15 days of arrival. Four photographs are also required for registration. The foreigners registered at Foreigners' Registration Office are required to report change of their addresses. All persons including Indian nationals are required to fill in a Disembarkation Card, at the time of arrival.

Departure from India
All persons, except nationals of Bhutan & Nepal, leaving by air, road or rail have to fill in an Embarkation Card at the time of departure.

Exit Formalities
Every foreigner who is about to depart finally from India must surrender his Certificate of Registration either to the Registration Officer of the place where he is registered or of the place from where he plans to depart or to the Immigration Officer at the Port / Checkpost of exit from India.

Foreign Travel Tax
Passengers embarking on trips to any place outside India from a Customs airport/seaport will have to pay a Foreign Travel Tax (FTT) of Rs. 500 and Rs. 150 on trips to Afganistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Srilanka and Maldives. No tax is payable on trips performed by ship from Rameshwaram to Talaimanar and in case of transit passengers, provided they do not leave the customs barrier. Transit passengers travelling by air who have to leave the airport on accout of mechanical trouble but continue their journey by the same aircraft and the same flight number by which they arrive are also exempt from FTT. Transit sea passengers leaving the ship for sightseeing, shopping etc. during the ships' call at any of the Indian ports will not be required to pay FTT.

Customs
Visitors are generally required to make a baggage declaration in respect of baggage and foreign currency in their possession. They are also required to obtain the Currency Declaration Form from the Customs. They should fill in the Disembarkation Card handed over to them by the airline during the course of the flight.

There are two channels for clearance :

Green Channel :
For passengers not in possesion of any dutiable articles or unaccompanied baggage.

Red Channel :
For passengers with dutiable articles or unaccompanied baggage or high value articles to be entered on the tourist Baggage Re-Export Form.

Dutiable articles or unaccompanied baggage or high-value articles must be entered on a Tourist Baggage Re-Export Form (TBRE). These articles must be reexported at the time of departure. A failure to re-export anything listed on the TBRE becomes a payable duty levied for each missing item. The following duty-free possessions are permissible- clothes and jewellery, cameras and up to five rolls of film; binoculars, a portable musical instrument, a radio or portable tape recorder, a tent and camping equipment, fishing rod, a pair of skis, two tennis rackets, 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars, 95 litres of liquor, and gifts not exceeding a value of Rs. 600 (about US$15). Depending on the attitude of the customs' official, one may or may not have to enter a portable computer on a TBRE form.

For more and updated information kindly visit the Central Board of Customs & Excise website - http://www.cbec.gov.in/travellers.htm.

Currency Allowed In India
There are no restrictions on the amount of foreign currency or travellers' cheques a tourist may bring into India provided he makes a declaration in the Currency Declaration Form given to him on arrival. This will enable him not only to exchange the currency bought in, but also to take the unspent currency out of India on departure. Cash, bank notes and travellers' cheques up to US$ 1,000 or equivalent, need not be declared at the time of entry. Any money in the form of travellers' cheques, drafts, bills, cheques, etc. in convertible currencies, which tourists wish to convert into Indian currency, should be exchanged only through authorised money changers and banks who will issue an encashment certificate that is required at the time of reconversion of any unspent money into foreign currency. Exchanging of foreign currency other than banks or authorised money changers is an offense under Foreign Exchange Regulations Act 1973.

Leaving India
Rupees are not allowed out of India. Exchanging them before you depart is the best option. Banking facilities, for the conversion of rupees into foreign currency are usually located in the same airport hall as the check-in counters. Its best to access these facilities before immigration as they are not available thereafter. All animal products, souvenirs, and trophies are subject to the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The export of skins made from protected wildlife species is not allowed. Such items cannot be imported into many countries, including the United States. As a general rule, avoiding such souvenirs that could be made of animal skins (except crocodile-leather goods) is best. Generally, items more than 100 years old cannot be exported without a permit from the Archaeological Survey, which has an office in Delhi. Reputable shops will provide you with the required permit or help you procure it. Items without permits will be detained by Indian Customs if they are believed to be over 100 years old.

Time: GMT/UTC +5:30.

Electricity: 230-240V, 50 HZ.  Sockets accept round pins. Should you wish to use appliances of 110 volts, some hotels may provide adaptors on request. It is advisable to carry universal adaptors.

Currency
The currency in India is the Rupee, which comes in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000. Please use authorised money changers and banks to change currency. They will issue a certificate of exchange which is required at the time of re-conversion of any unused currency. Under the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999, it is an offence to exchange foreign currency other than through authorised money changers or banks. The currency may be exchanged at the airport on arrival. The currency exchange facility will also be made available at the congress venue.

Most bank ATMs honour Visa, Visa Electron, Master & Maestro cards & you may use these ATMs also to withdraw money. One such ATM is available at the venue.

Most hotels, shops & other establishments accept credit cards. Master & VISA cards are accepted at almost all such establishments whereas some of them accept Diners & American Express cards as well.

Insurance and Liability
The Organizers do not take responsibility for any individual, medical, travel or personal insurance. Participants are advised to secure their own insurance policies as necessary.

Language
A host of languages are spoken in India. English is widely spoken or understood except in rural areas.

Health
Please consult with your physician regarding health precautions prior to visiting India.

If you are coming from or have visited Africa, South America or an area infected with Yellow Fever within five days prior to your arrival in India, proof of inoculation against Yellow Fever is required.

Emergency Medical Services will be provided at the conference venue.

Telephone
The Country Code for India is `91´. The City Code for Hyderabad is `40´. Landline numbers in major cities like Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore & Chennai have eight digits whereas the numbers in smaller cities could have only 4-7 digits. All mobile numbers are 10 digit & begin with `9´.

Area Codes in India are referred to as STD codes. STD codes for some cities are:

Delhi           -      11
Mumbai       -      22
Kolkata       -      33
Chennai      -      44
Hyderabad  -      40
Bangalore   -      80

Dialing from Outside India -

 1.         Landline                                             

International access code (`00´ or `+") followed by 91, then STD CODE followed by LANDLINE NO., eg. +91 40 XXXXXXXX (`40´ is the STD CODE for Hyderabad).

 2.         Mobile

International access code (`00´ or `+") followed by 91 and the 10-digit MOBILE NO., eg. +91 XXXXXXXXXX.

 Dialing within India -

1.         From Indian landline to Indian landline

 Local call -  Landline no.                     

Long distance call - 0 then STD Code followed by Landline No

2.         From Indian landline to Indian Mobile

Local call -10 digit MOBILE NO.   

Long distance call - 0 followed by 10 digit MOBILE NO.

3.         From Indian Mobile to Indian landline

Local or Long distance calls

0 followed by STD Code, followed by LANDLINE NO.

4.         From Indian Mobile to Indian Mobile

Local Call - 10 digit MOBILE NO.                           

Long distance call - 0 followed by 10 digit MOBILE NO.                

Dialing out  from India  to International numbers
The international access code when dialing out of India is "00" (or `+" when dialing from a mobile phone).

In India both GSM & CDMA (WLL) mobile systems are present. Please contact your mobile service providers to check their roaming partners & tariffs in India. Indian SIM cards may be made available on request.

Personal Property
Please take good care of your personal property. The Conference Organizers and staff at the venues are not responsible for any loss or damage to personal property.

Food
Indian cuisine differs from region to region. The variety of food you get in India is unimaginable. For people in the north wheat is the staple, while it is rice in south India. Generally Indian food is spicy and hot. The waiters can be told to make it less spicy. Many restaurants serve Continental, Chinese, Thai, Spanish, French. Mexican, Italian, Lebanese, Mediterranean, and other cuisines. American fast food is very popular and outlets are present in most cities and towns.

Tipping is optional but a common practice in India. The usual practice is leaving a 5-10% tip for the services provided.

Smoking Policy
All conference rooms and public areas in the venue are strict no-smoking zones. Smoking in public areas (eg. hotels, airports, restaurants) & transportation (eg. airlines, railways, cars & coaches) is a punishable offence.

Key Contacts for Assistance
ICE - Integrated Conference & Event Management, a division of the Indian joint-venture company of TUI Travel PLC. has been appointed as the official Destination Management Company (DMC).

For pre or post congress tours                 -           wnc2009tours@lpti.in

For Hotel Bookings at Hyderabad             -           wnc2009hotels@iceindia.in

For planning your overall travel or for any travel related assistance, you may contact -

Rajesh Mahajan                                     -           rajesh@iceindia.in

Contact Numbers of ICE, Hyderabad -

Telephone                     -           +91 40 30924402
                                                +91 40 30924403                                           

Fax                               -           +91 40 42000164