Yogi inaugurates first VFS Global Joint Visa Application Centre in Lucknow

Lucknow: Technology can help in achieving not only the goal of ease of doing business but also ease of living, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Saturday.

He was speaking at the inauguration of a VFS Global Visa Application Centre here.

With the launch of this centre, the facility to complete the visa application process for 10 countries ­- Austria, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Estonia, Hungary, Portugal, Germany, Italy and Saudi Arabia - will be available in Lucknow.

“The inauguration of the VFS centre in Lucknow a week before the Global Investors Summit is an opportunity not only for the residents of Lucknow but also for the people of Uttar Pradesh,” Adityanath said. With the launch of this centre, applying for visas to 10 countries will become much easier for the residents of the state, he said.

“By using technology in today’s time, we can achieve the goal of not only ease of doing business but also ease of living. If a little effort is made in this direction, the goals can be achieved,” he added.

This centre has the capacity to handle more than 1.20 lakh visa applications every year.

Located strategically on the 1st floor of the Interstate Bus Terminal, Alambagh (Shalimar Gateway Mall), the centre provides unparalleled accessibility to travellers using the inter-state bus service from the remote parts of Uttar Pradesh. It is also a short drive away from the Lucknow railway station, airport and a walk away from the Alambaug metro station. “I have also been informed that VFS Global, in collaboration with the Indian Hotels Company Limited, will train the youth of the state in hospitality services as per the skill development programme of the state government,” the chief minister said.

“This will benefit Uttar Pradesh’s youths and carry forward the state’s legacy of ‘Atithi Devo Bhava’,” he said. Adityanath said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts over the last nine years to bring a comprehensive change in the country are now bearing fruit and the results are in front of everyone.

“You must have seen over the past five to six years that the government has carried out numerous operations to rescue Indians stranded in other countries or victims of disasters, which has been recognised at the global level,” the chief minister said. VFS Global is the world’s largest technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions.