Foreign nationals applying for Indian visas will now have to declare their criminal records as part of the new visa format approved by the Government to check child sexual abuse and a range of other crimes by travellers. The move follows a specific request from Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi made to Sushma Swaraj, her counterpart in the MEA, last June to ensure mechanisms to prevent travelling child sex offenders (TCSOs) from entering India and perpetrating sexual violence on children here.