No US Consulate office in Bangalore

Virtual presence post dedicated website for State visa seekers

"There is no prospect of opening another Consul General office in India after the one opened in Hyderabad last year", Andrew T Simkin, US Consul General in Chennai, told reporters after calling on Chief Minister Yeddyurappa.

During his interaction with the Chief Minister, Simkin assured to increase facilities for people of Karnataka who go to Chennai Consulate for visa and other documentation. The interview time has been reduced to two-days for visa seekers, he said, adding they planned to provide "virtual presence post" through a dedicated website specially for the people of the state.

While the CM welcomed the move to set up the online feature, Yeddyurappa said that each year thousands of Bangaloreans who travelled to the United States had to travel to Chennai for their Visas and a branch here would be convenient for Bangaloreans.

He also told reporters that he was going to the United States in October to invite industrialists to attend the global investors’ meet to be held in Bangalore in next January and would make use of the opportunity to present Bangalore’s case for a separate United State Consulate.