Seattle [US], July 13 (ANI): Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and Prakash Gupta, Consul General of India in Seattle, jointly inaugurated the first Indian Visa Application Center (IVAC) in the cities of Seattle and Bellevue on Friday (local time). 
In his inaugural address, Mayor Harrell expressed his admiration for the Indian community in the Greater Seattle area, praising their role and contributions in enriching the bonds of friendship between India and the US. 
Consul General Prakash Gupta emphasized that the opening of these new visa application centers in Seattle and Bellevue reflects the Indian government’s commitment to deepen its relationship with the Pacific Northwest states.
He said, “The opening of the Indian Consulate in Seattle is a reflection of the Government of India’s strong commitment to deepen our relations with Pacific North Western states of the US and through the opening of these new visa application centres (VAC) in Seattle and Bellevue, we hope to ensure for all consular applicants a more convenient experience to adequately prepare their travel to India.”
“Providing smooth and efficient consular services is one of our top priorities and we would welcome any feedback and suggestions on further improvement from all applicants as we commence our consular operations in the Greater Seattle Area,” he added.
The IVAC services commencement follows the opening of the first Indian Consulate in Seattle in November 2023 and aims to provide consular services like visa, passport, OCI and other related consular requirements to residents of the Greater Seattle, Consulate General of India in Seattle said in a statement.
“For ease of transportation and convenience of residents living on the east side in Bellevue, an additional IVAC drop-off facility for receiving consular applications has also been made functional at 1400 112th Avenue SE, Bellevue – WA -98004 (Suite 200),” the official statement read. 
Both the Seattle and Bellevue IVAC Centers will be managed by VFS Global, the outsourced visa services partner of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Amit Kumar Sharma, Head of VFS Global, said, “VFS Global shared a long-standing relationship with the Government of India since 2008 and we are excited to expand our partnership further. The new centre in Seattle and Bellevue, United States of America will play a crucial role in effectively catering to the growing demand for visa and consular services to India.”
“We are confident that these visa application centres will enhance customer experience by making the visa application process even more smooth, thereby helping us serve the travellers and Indian diaspora better,” he added. 
These services are expected to benefit the large Indian diaspora community in the consular jurisdiction of the Indian Consulate in Seattle, which covers nine Pacific Northwestern states: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming. (ANI)
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