NEW DELHI: The
US Embassy in New Delhi on Monday cancelled all
visa appointments from April 20 to April 25 in wake of the six-day lockdown in the state, imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19 virus.
In a tweet, the US Embassy informed: “Visa appointments, both in-person and interview waiver, are cancelled from April 20-25 in light of the curfew.”
With this, foreign missions in India have begun suspending visa processing due to the severe
Covid surge in the country.
A few countries are learnt to be considering asking a significant part of their embassy staff here to leave the country.
“Effective immediately, due to rising Covid rates and for the safety and protection of our customers and staff, until further notice the US Consulate General in Mumbai will only provide essential services to US citizens and limited visa services. US embassy New Delhi and the consulates in Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata continue operations, but will assess local conditions regularly," the US embassy website said.
:Should conditions require cancellation of some appointments, you will be notified directly by email. We are unable to speculate on or respond to inquiries regarding potential future cancellations or appointment availability. Applicants not notified of an appointment cancellation should plan to attend their interview appointment on the scheduled date and time,” it added.
The US Embassy in New Delhi and consulates general in Chennai, Hyderabad, and Kolkata “continue to accommodate a limited number of regular visa appointments, including student visas…. we expect appointment slots to be filled quickly. Other routine services remain temporarily suspended,” it added.
Besides, the Russian embassy also informed that its visa section is temporarily ceasing operations until further notice “due to heavy Covid situation in the country.”