India to open new consulate in Seattle

New Delhi: India is set to soon open a new consulate in Seattle in the US, around seven years after it first made an announcement on the initiative, people familiar with the matter said on Saturday.

A joint statement issued after talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden in Washington in June had mentioned that India will operationalise its new consulate in Seattle later this year.

It is learnt that 2002 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Prakash Gupta will be the Consulate-General at the mission in Seattle, which is a major technology hub.

The consulate is likely to be operationalised by the end of this month, the people cited above said.

Gupta is currently serving as a joint secretary at the UNP (United Nations Political) Division at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

India had first announced its plan to open a consulate in Seattle in 2016.

The Indo-US joint statement of June had mentioned plans by both sides to open new consulates in each other's countries.

"Concomitant with the rapid growth in our strategic partnership and demand for travel, both sides intend to open new consulates in each other's countries," it said.

"The United States intends to initiate the process to open two new consulates in India in the cities of Bengaluru and Ahmedabad," it said.   "India will take steps to operationalize its new consulate in Seattle later this year, and open two new consulates at jointly identified locations in the United States," the joint statement said.