External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday inaugurated a branch secretariat of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in Chennai and expressed the hope that it would help Tamil Nadu and other southern states to facilitate and promote their contacts with foreign governments, overseas investors and business leaders.
Noting that this was the third branch secretariat after Kolkata and Hyderabad, Mukherjee said it would also serve as a window for interaction with foreign consulates located in Chennai.
These consulates could now submit their requests on various issues of day-to-day functioning directly to the branch secretariat and need not approach the MEA through their embassies in Delhi.
The minister said the secretariat would help promote cultural exchanges with various parts of the world and help attract more tourists.
He said though most consular and passport services to the people of the State were rendered directly by the regional passport offices in Chennai and Tiruchi, some services like attestation of documents “are mandatorily required to be provided only by the consular division of the Ministry of External Affairs”.
With the opening of the branch secretariat, these services could eventually be provided in Chennai itself.
Pranab said Tamil Nadu was one of the largest recipients of foreign direct investment among the Indian states.
A large number of business delegations, accompanying foreign dignitaries, had been visiting Chennai regularly.
The branch secretariat would further speed up this process by identifying suitable investors and business partners through Indian missions abroad and facilitating their visit to the State.
He also announced that two more passport offices would be opened in Coimbatore and Madurai by the year-end.
Thanking Pranab Mukherjee for acceding to the request he made to  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in November last year to open this branch secretariat in Chennai in view of the increase in FDI in the State and a number of foreign delegations having their offices here, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi said his government had signed MoUs for 11 new industries with an investment of Rs 12,000 crore.
The branch should supplement the efforts of the state government in promoting trade and investment.
  He said that next to Delhi and Mumbai, Chennai had the highest number of diplomatic offices.
The branch secretariat could extend services, including duty-free customs exemptions, registration of vehicles, issuance of licences, etc.
Karunanidhi said the branch secretariat could also help immigrant workers exploited by certain overseas job placement agencies.