The links between Kolkata and the United States are over 200 years old. In 1787, only four years after the end of the American Revolutionary War, the first American ship to visit India reached Kolkata. Recognizing the importance of contact with India, President George Washington, on November 19, 1792, nominated Benjamin Joy to be the first U.S. Consul in Kolkata. One American ship, the “GEORGE”, actually made twenty-one round trip voyages between 1815 and 1837. Over the years the bonds between Kolkata and the U.S.A. have grown stronger. Those who built these bridges of understanding were individual men and women who were zealous in their desire to understand each other and who were dedicated to the vision of a world of peace and fellowship based on mutual interest and trust. The Consular Section over the years has issued thousands of visas to facilitate travel to U.S. for various reasons.  The Kolkata Consular district covers the vast areas of Eastern and Northeastern Region. The Consular District can be traced from the regional map given above.

A Customer Service Statement to Visa Applicants

We manage the visa process strictly but fairly in order to best protect the United States. At the same time, we are committed to the essential openness for which the United States has always been known. We welcome and encourage travel to the United States. We promise to you, the visa applicant, that:

• We will treat you with dignity and respect, even if we are unable to grant you a visa;
• We will treat you as an individual and your case as unique;
• We will remember that to you a visa interview may be a new or intimidating experience and that you may be nervous;
• We will use the limited time available for interview to get as full a picture as possible of your travel plans and intentions;
• We will use our available resources to fairly assist all applicants to get appointments to allow travel in time for business, study and other important obligations;
• We will post detailed and accurate information on visa requirements and application procedures on every Embassy and Consulate website,
• We will provide information on appointment waiting times at every Embassy and Consulate at http://travel.state.gov/ and,
• We will explain the reason for any visa denial to you.

If you are a student, we will make every effort to ensure that you get an appointment and, if qualified, a visa in time to start classes. If you are a medical or humanitarian emergency traveler, we will expedite processing for those dealing with life-threatening emergencies. If you are a business traveler, we will establish appropriate mechanisms to facilitate business travel and expedite cases of particular concern to American business. At the same time, we expect you, the visa applicant, to:

• Plan your travel and visa application as far in advance as possible;
• Complete your application fully and accurately;
• Be forthcoming about your purpose and plans;
• Prepare for your interview by being able to clearly and concisely describe your intentions.

Public Diplomacy complements and reinforces traditional diplomacy by communicating U.S. interests directly to the Indian public and by fostering mutual understanding and building trust between the United States and India. The Public Affairs Section is responsible for press relations, cultural, and educational affairs, and exchange and information activities that articulate U.S. foreign policy and promote greater mutual understanding between India and the United States. The Public Affairs Section in Kolkata also supports the American Library, located in the American Center. Information about the United States is readily available here. As part of its overall program of bilateral cooperation, the Public Affairs Section also has a wide range of academic and professional development exchange programs with India. As public interest in, and access to, communications technology continues to grow worldwide, the public dimension of diplomacy is becoming more important than ever. For further information about the United States, its institutions, values, and people, please see the “Information USA” section.

The Press Section in the Public Affairs Office (PA) of the U.S.Consulate General, Kolkata is headed by the Public Affairs Officer (PAO),who also serves as the Director of the American Center. The PAO is the official spokesperson of the U.S. Consulate General in Kolkata. The Press Section’s principal jobs are to provide authoritative information on U.S. Government policies to individuals and organizations in the media and government offices in Eastern and Northeastern India and to track — and report to Embassy New Delhi — media opinion on a range of issues important to the United States and India. It coordinates the Consulate’s contact with the media in West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Assam, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. In addition to issuing press releases five days a week from the Washington File on U.S. Government domestic and foreign policies, it programs visits and press contacts by senior U.S. Government officials, organizes events and prepares and distributes press materials on them, which are of interest to the media and general public. Besides materials in English, it sends out edited and translated press information in vernacular Bengali and Assamese languages. The Press Section also distributes a host of informative and resourceful publications and electronic journals, prepared by the U.S. Department of State on a varied topics of global importance. All press releases issued by Kolkata PA are posted on the Consulate’s website and duly archived.

The United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) promotes mutual understanding between citizens of the United States and India. www.usief.org.in

USIEF’s core activities:

• Administering the Fulbright-Nehru and other Fulbright fellowships for Indian and American students, scholars and professionals.
• Providing educational advising services for Indian students interested in pursuing higher education in the United States through its EducationUSA advising centers.

USIEF’s EducationUSA Advising Services (EAS) provide accurate, comprehensive and current information to students who are interested in pursuing higher education and scholarships in the U.S. We do not endorse or rank any college or university but guide students in their pursuit of a U.S. degree. Specialized seminars and workshops on admission application procedures and strategies, education fairs and pre-departure orientation programs are held all the year round. USIEF advising centers are located at New Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai.

Kolkata contact details are:

USIEF Regional Office
The American Center
38A, Jawaharlal Nehru Road
Kolkata 700 071
E-mail: usiefkolkata@usief.org.in
Tel.: +91-33-6827 6300
Whatsapp +91 82402 61121

(For Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and West Bengal)

Scam alert!

Several posts have reported that some vendors in their area have reported receiving tenders/requests for quotation purporting to be from the U.S. Embassy, in which they are asked to provide a price quote for 10 solar generators, and to deliver the generators to the Embassy as samples, which will qualify them to be a regular supplier of 150 generators.  The tenders are sent … Read online….

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Online Auction

The next Kolkata Online Auction is scheduled to begin at 6:00 pm on Friday, September 29, 2023 and will close at 10:00 pm. on Thursday, October 5, 2023. The interested bidders will need to register themselves by going into the below link and clicking the Register icon on the top right. Further guidance is provided in the attached note. The items to be auctioned during this online offering are used household furniture and appliances, computer peripherals and various other articles.

Kolkata Online Auction (Please click on the tab Open Active Auction at the top right corner)

These goods will be displayed at the premises of Suman’s Exchange at 8/1, Loudon Street, Kolkata-700 017 during the entire bidding cycle from 11:00 am to 06:00 pm, all days. For more details, please contact the Auction House at Mobile No. 98311-42848. Items will be sold “AS IS WHERE IS” to the highest bidder.

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Public Notice 

Request for Quotation (RFQ)# PR11898821-Make Ready of Apartment. 

The U.S. Consulate General, Kolkata is inviting quotations from the responsible and financially capable companies to submit their quotation for Make Ready of 01 apartment. Interested companies/contractors can contact the following persons for more details. Sukanta Chakraborty at chakrabortysx2@state.gov  ; Tele: 033-6827-2535 and Arvind Poddar at  PoddarAX@state.gov ; Tele: 033-6827-2534

The U.S. Government intends to award the contract to the responsible company submitting the lowest priced, technically acceptable offer.  We intend to award a contract based on initial proposals, without holding discussions, although we may hold discussions with companies in the competitive range if there is a need to do so. Last day to submit the quotation is 12:00 noon on Friday, October 15, 2023

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STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE: PROCUREMENT

Procurement office of the US Consulate General, Kolkata carries out all its procurement functions in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and Department of State Acquisition Regulations (DOSAR).  The objectives of the procurement section is to satisfy the customer in terms of cost, quality, and timeliness of the delivered product or service; minimize administrative operating costs; conduct business with integrity, fairness, and openness; and contribute to the attainment of the public policy goals adopted by the Congress and the President of the United States.

Procurement methods:

1. Purchase Orders (PO) below $3,500 (micro purchase) – competition not mandatory
2. Petty cash orders (below $250)
3. PO above $3,500 but below $15,000 – competition – Rule of 3 (RFQ to at least 3 vendors)
4. PO above $15,000 and upto $25,000 – competition with public notice for at least 10 days
5. PO above $25,000 and upto $150,000  – competition with public notice for at least 15 days
6. PO above $150,000 – complex contract
7. Acquisitions above $250,000 – exceeding Contracting Officer’s Warrant threshold – A/OPE
8. Multi-year IDIQ contract and Blanket Purchase Agreement
9. Acquisitions through AQM /RPSO / SELP
10. Purchases using Government credit cards

Review and approval process:

• Review the procurement request package for its completeness
• Determine acquisition method based dollar value
• Conduct additional market research and determine mandatory required sources
• Prepare solicitation package
• Advertise for competition and send out RFQ to prospective bidders
• Arrange site visit and arrange pre proposal conference with vendors
• Receive bids/proposals and prepare price matrix and send tech part for evaluation
• Conduct negotiations / discussions with bidders
• Male award decision based on LPTA factors and process for PO
• Send PO to the vendor and obtain acceptance of award
• Carry out contract administration; modify the PO as and when needed
• Close out contract after payment is made to the vendor following delivery of goods or services

What you can do as the requester to make simplified acquisition efficient:

• Prepare good descriptions of what you need;
• Make sure your procurement requests are complete;
• Provide an Independent Government Cost Estimate;
• Provide a list of sources if you know of any; and
• Submit your request as far in advance of your required delivery date as possible.

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