Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa seeks United States consul office in Bengaluru

Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday requested the US authorities to open a consulate office in Bengaluru and offered all assistance from his government.
The chief minister placed his request at a video call he had with US Consul General in Chennai Judith Ravin. The chief minister said out of the 100 US companies operating in India, about 90 firms including the leading technology firms such as Cisco, IBM, Intel, GE, HP, and Oracle have a significant presence in Bengaluru. As an investor friendly state, Karnataka would welcome more investments from the US firms, he added.

In fact, Karnataka has always been pressing for a US visa centre in Bengaluru. Officials always impressed upon the US authorities that about 70% of those visiting the US from South India are from Karnataka.

In a recent chat with the US authorities, deputy chief minister CN Ashwath Narayan also had sought a US visa centre in Bengaluru. "We have always had good relations with the US. Of the top Fortune 500 Companies, 400 are in Karnataka. If more companies want to set up shops here, the government will provide all the necessary assistance. Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa is already acting on this,'' he had said.