The Kingdom of Belgium and VFS Global recently extended their visa application services for Belgium to Pune, with the opening today of the Belgian Visa Application Centre. Karl Van den Bossche, Consul General of Belgium in Mumbai, inaugurated the new centre located at Sohrab Hall, on Tadiwala Road near Pune Railway Station. This new initiative is in continuation to the decision of extending such services to six new locations across India. Catering to the growing demand of Belgium bound travellers in the region, this strategic move is aimed at offering new services, facilities and benefits to visa applicants, and boost tourism, trade and investments, and bilateral ties with India. The joint announcement was made by Van den Bossche and Murali Raghavan, Chief Operating Officer – South Asia and CIS, VFS Global at a press conference held on the occasion of opening the new Belgian Visa Application Centre in the city.
In 2012, nearly 34000 visa applications were received from travellers in Western and Southern India by the Belgian Consulate in Mumbai. This increase over the last few years in Belgium bound travellers has encouraged the new initiative for expansion in the regions. Speaking on the occasion,Van den Bossche said, “We are bringing our service closer to the public and business community, to enhance the user friendliness. We recognise the importance to open a Visa Application Centre in Pune, a rapidly growing hub for industry, trade and tourism. We are happy to do this together with VFS Global who has been our trusted partner for many years. Together with Chennai, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad this additional centre will offer a high quality and expedient service to our applicants; and we strive to return passports within 3 working days. With this initiative, Belgium further intensifies its cultural and economic ties with India. Next steps are the opening of a Consulate General in Chennai and the visit of a large business delegation headed by HRH Princess Astrid of Belgium to New Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai on November 23-29. Also Belgium’s festival Europalia, one of Europe’s largest cultural events, will focus on India this year and be opened by President Mukherjee.”
Raghavan further opined, “It has been our privilege to be the trusted partner to the Government of Belgium in providing services to facilitate visa application process for travellers in India. It is indeed a proud moment for us to have successfully launched the six new services within a period of five months! We are committed to provide professional and convenient services to all applicants applying for a Belgian visa in the region. VFS Global is privileged to be associated with the Government of Belgium in India since 2006, apart from nine other countries globally. This extension of our association with the Belgian Government reflects their faith in our abilities, and we are sure this will go a long way in forging a longstanding partnership with VFS Global.”
