News East West
TORONTO: The Indian consulate here has become the only Indian mission abroad which provides services to people even on Saturdays.
The consulate also provides 24-hour emergency services.
Interacting with media persons here, new consul general Dinesh Bhatia said the Toronto mission is the only which provides services on Saturdays, apart from 24-hour emergency services.
Apart from time-bound services, Mr Bhatia said all inquiries by people will be responded to within 24 hours by the consulate.
The consul general also announced that he will meet the general public to listen to their grievances every Friday from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. “You don’t need any appointment. Anyone can walk into the consulate and we will hear their problems,’’ Mr Bhatia said.
The consul general said he would discourage people seeking services from the consulate not to approach any middlemen. Since the consulate is open to anyone to approach, he said his office won’t entertain anyone approaching them through middlemen.
When some media persons brought to his notice the complaints of many people that the consulate staff was discourteous to them, Bhatia said this won’t happen under his watch.
The consul general said their emergency line was open 24 hours to provide consular services at short notice in case of emergencies.
Mr Bhatia also announced that elderly people and those with little babies visiting the consulate will not be made to wait. “They will be provided services immediately on their arrival.”
About the complaints against the current service provider BLS International Ltd at their Brampton office, the consul general said his ministry is seized of the matter and would take issue into consideration when the new contract with a service provider is signed.
He also hinted that there could one more visa office to serve people in Mississauga, Hamilton and other areas which have a big concentration of the Indo-Canadian community.
The Indian consulate in Toronto is one of the busiest Indian missions abroad.
Last year, the consulate issued 73,000 visas, 13,000 OCI cards, 14,000 passports and 29,000 other services, according to Mr Bhatia.
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