Seattle [US], August 28 (ANI): The new chancery premises of the Consulate General of India in Seattle were officially inaugurated Tuesday (local time) by Ambassador of India to the USA Vinay Kwatra, in the presence of Governor of Washington State Bob Ferguson, US Senator Maria Cantwell and Mayor of Seattle Bruce Harrell, the Consulate General of India, Seattle, said in an official statement.

Addressing an audience of elected leaders and prominent Indian American community members, Governor Ferguson welcomed the opening of the new Indian consulate as a landmark development, especially in deepening bilateral ties between India and the US Pacific Northwest region, the statement said.

The new Chancery premises of the Indian Consulate are located in the heart of downtown Seattle (1015, 2nd Ave, Seattle, WA -98104) at the Federal Reserve Building and spread over two floors: the first floor houses the Consular section and is open for visitors of consular services and public dealing, while the eleventh floor houses the Administrative and Commercial wings. The location had earlier served as the Seattle branch of the Federal Bank of San Francisco from 1951 to 2008 and has been listed in the US Federal Government's National Register of Historic Places since 2013, the release added.

It may be recalled that the announcement for the commencement of the 6th Indian Consulate in the US was made by the Prime Minister of India in June 2023, and within five months, it commenced its operations from a temporary location in Seattle in November 2023.

Following the initiation of its consular operations in July 2024, the Consulate has provided services to nearly 23,722 applicants from its consular jurisdiction covering Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Nebraska, as per the release.

The inaugural ceremony was followed by a brief interaction of Ambassador Vinay Kwatra with representatives of the Indian American community.

During the visit, he also interacted with senior leadership of tech companies from the Greater Seattle area, elected leadership of Washington State, and leaders of Indian origin elected to public office, the release added. (ANI)