New Delhi/IBNS, June 27 -- India has called for a merit-based treatment of visa applications by its citizens as the United States has tightened the visa-screening process particularly for students, media reports said.

In an attempt to tighten the visa screening process, the US has announced that all individuals applying for non-immigrant visas in F (student), M, or J (academic scholar) categories are required to adjust the privacy settings on their social media accounts, making it 'public' to facilitate vetting necessary to establish their identity and admissibility to the country.

In a post on X, the official handle of the U.S. Embassy in India (@USAndIndia) shared the announcement stating, "Every visa adjudication is a national securi...