Sunday, March 13 2005 16:04 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Dubai: Saudi Arabia has said that there will be no large-scale grant of citizenship for expatriates, including Indians, even though the kingdom has opened doors for foreigners becoming its citizens.

Changes made to the Saudi naturalisation law have already been published in the media as well as laws governing Saudis marrying non-Saudis," Deputy Minister for Civil Affairs Nasser Al-Hanaya was quoted as saying by Saudi Press Agency.

He, however, said, "The amended law does not imply any large-scale handout of Saudi citizenship to non-Saudis and the Government has simply changed certain rules in accordance with what it sees are in best public interest."

Earlier, reports appearing in a section of the press said, foreigners applying for Saudi citizenship need not fill any special form.

Many Indians had applied for Saudi citizenship, reports said, but their exact number were not known.

There are an estimated 1.3 million Indians in Saudi Arabia, many of them long-time residents of the kingdom.