Till mid-90s the most favorite place for the left parties to stage protests against the ‘expansionist programs of the diabolical west’, specially the US, has been in front of American Consulate on Harrington Street.
When the name of the street was changed to Ho Chi Minh Sarani, it so much affronted the US that it almost thought of closing the consulate altogether.
Started in 1792 with the appointment of Benjamin Joy as consul-general by President George Washington, the Kolkata consulate was one of the oldest of all US consulates in any country. It caters to Visa requirements of those wishing to visit US for the entire eastern India.
So when the consulate came on the verge of closing down, the then CM, Jyoti Basu intervened and saw to it that the protests were scaled down and reduced in frequency as well.
He realized that if indeed the consulate closed down, it’d be a big problem for Visa seekers, and also perhaps the students here would not be able to use the well-stocked American Library.
Even though the consulate remained, relation between the 2 countries hit the nadir, what with twin nuke blasts happening during the BJP regime.
Today the situation has altered a lot. There’s a realization in US of the importance of India as a valuable ally in South Asia. Military-to-military cooperation is on the rise as much as the desire of US majors to participate in the country’s economic boom.
Presently, as the 2 countries are zeroing on a watered-down 1-2-3 agreement for nuclear cooperation, US business delegations are frequently touching down in Kolkata to seek business.
Keeping in line with changed perception, the US consulate last year created a new post of Principal Commercial Officer (see article, Are they missing opportunity?)
And now, going by today’s report in ABP, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has proposed to enhance the status of Kolkata consulate, which will shortly be headed by 01-level of foreign-service officers instead of now being headed by 02-level officers.
The consulate will also see an increase in number of officers in the Visa section. In addition, Ms Rice has also proposed to start new consulates in Hyderabad and Bangalore that do not have one at the moment.
Really, how times change! [Collated from today’s news report in ABP]
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