New York Consulate to issue a record 100,000 visas this year

LONG queues on any given working day are a familiar scene outside American Embassy in New Delhi or its consulates at Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkatta. This could as well be the scene at the Indian Consulate in New York in coming years.

Located in the Upper East Side Historic District, 3 East 64th Street, the Indian Consulate this year has been experiencing a rush of peopleIndian Americans and the mainstream community as wellseeking visas to India.

Till October, the New York office has already issued more than 80,000 visas in different categories. By the end of the year, we expect it to cross the 100,000 mark, an all-time high, Shashi Kumar, incharge of visa operations at the Consulate, told The Indian Express.

Kumar said the New York Consulate over the past one decade has experienced a gradual increase in visa applications. It seems there is more interest in India than ever, he said.

A decade earlier in 1995, the Consulate issued some 59,000 visas for India. It increased to about 80,000 in 2002. Last year as many as 94,167 Indian visas were issued by the New York Consulate here.

And had the expected 10,000 OCI (Overseas Citizens of India) cards been issued by New York Consulate this year, the actual number of visas to be issued would have been much more.

The various schemes launched by the Indian Government like PIO and OCI cards have helped the Indian overseas missions in various ways as these cards issue long term and life-long visas to people of Indian origin.

Kumar said the Consulate has taken several steps to streamline visa processing system here so that there is minimal inconvenience to the people who come seeking for an Indian visa.

Though functioning with the same strength of staff for the past few years, Kumar said, the steps initiated by the Consul General, Neelam Deo, has helped in improving efficiency and reducing waiting hours.

Besides computerization, and accepting applications and issuing visas by post, Kumar said they have increased the frequency of visa camps being held under its jurisdiction. He said people from 11 StatesMaine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for an Indian visa at the New York Consulate.

Officials familiar with the visa process said that the number of business visas have increased by three times in the last few years, indicating that the Americans are increasingly looking at India as their business destination.

Though the figures are yet to be compiled for the year, officials believe the actual number of business visas issued this year could be an all time high. Besides the business visa, a significantly large number of Americans tracing their roots to India, now approach the consulate for tourist visa as well.

With more awareness about India in this country, a large number of people want to go to India to explore it as a tourist, Kumar said.