“There are three relationships here – India-US relationship, Indian community-US relationship, and Indian community-India relationship. All are very important and we need to focus on all three”, said Mr. Chakravorty.

A seasoned diplomat with years of diplomacy and varied experiences of a diverse classes of people from different parts of the world extending from the East to the West and the North to the South behind him, Mr. Sandeep Chakravorty as Consul General of India in New York should prove to be a worthy successor to his equally worthy predecessors who all left a mark of their own.

The Indian Consulate, New York website introduces Mr. Chakravorty in the following words.

“Mr. Sandeep Chakravorty is a member of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) since 1996. Before joining the Government of India, he worked for several years in organizations dealing with forestry, environment and watershed development issues in India.

He has served in India’s Missions in Madrid, Bogota, Dhaka and Lima. In the Ministry of External Affairs of India, New Delhi he worked on several desks including Press Relations Officer as well as Private Secretary to Minister of State for External Affairs. He also served in the Eurasia Division dealing with Central Asia and in the East Asia Division on China, Japan, Koreas and Mongolia. He was India’s Deputy High Commissioner in Dhaka, Bangladesh from July 2012 to June 2015. From July 2015 to July 2017 he was Ambassador of India to Peru and Bolivia with residence in Lima. He assumed charge as Consul General of India in New York on August 3, 2017.

He holds a Master’s Degree in Advanced Studies from Geneva University and has an MA in Sociology. He has a PG Diploma in Forestry Management from Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal. He graduated in Physics from Delhi University.

He was born in 1968 and is married with twin daughters. He is fluent in Hindi, Bangla, English and Spanish.”

The Indian Panorama has always been the first newspaper to welcome an incoming Consul General. And this applies to Permanent Mission of India also.

Even before Mr. Chakravorty had arrived, I emailed a request for an interview. Such interviews are more in the nature of trying to know the person rather than be explorative on issues. Of course, the issues are to be there which form the basis of a conversation but these acquire some kind of sophistication and politeness when meeting for the first time. Also, a journalist has no list of complaints and grievances for the new arrival. Therefore, the meeting of The Indian Panorama team which was joined by friends from PTC TV led by the channel’s US operations chief Davender Singh, turned out to be a friendly exchange of views in a relaxed setting.

Mr. Chakravorty, a suave and gentle person, was extremely responsive and forthcoming on even certain tricky issues. He was candid enough to answer questions fielded by the editor Prof. Saluja and the assistant editor Bidisha Roy, and the PTC representative Davender Singh. The Deputy Consul General Paramita Tripathi joined the Consul General, though not taking part in the conversation.  

Here are excerpts from the interview.

When somebody comes to a new posting, there is something in mind like what kind of impression one wants to create and one begins to think in terms of creating a legacy. What did you have in your mind when you came to New York as the Consul General?

I would like to reciprocate your words; we want to create a productive and constructive relationship with the media and the Indian community at large. The framework of the relationship is set by our government officials in India and our Ambassador in Washington. We will basically follow the script that has been drafted by our leadership. But as you said every person is different and I would also love to leave a legacy behind me. My legacy that I would love to leave behind is fantastic relationship with the Indian community here. I believe in an open door policy. I believe this is the home for every Indian here in my jurisdiction. Whether you want some services from the consulate or not you should be always looking forward to come to the consulate.  We are also eager to interact with the media. What I would like to do is – our government has announced many programs – particular flagship programs – which desire to involve the community in the development of India. So, we would try to give more focus on that. As our Prime Minister said, the aspirations and expectations of people in India have grown. Here we have all the expertise and experience and the resources. I am not talking about financial resources but all kinds of resources. My team’s main responsibility is to give the opportunity to the community. Many times, people want to do things in India but there is lack of information and they do not know what to do. So, if we can play the role of a catalyst or a service provider and can involve the community for development of India, I think that could be a legacy. It has been a humbling experience for me to be appointed the Consul General of India. I would try to do my best. I am always available so please connect to us. In last couple of years there has been incredible change in India, in United States and their relationship. The Indian community played a major role in that. The strength of Indian community will grow and India-US relationship will be stronger. There are three relationships here – India-US relationship, Indian community-US relationship, and Indian community-India relationship. All are very important and we need to focus on all three.

You spoke about flagship schemes of Government of India. Can you elaborate?

In last few years we rolled out those schemes. Flagship schemes are important programs such as Make in India, Digital India, and Start up India. For all these programs, there is a huge role that United States can play, the Indian community can play. We are already seeing huge interest for these programs. What is Make in India? It is to invest in India which has become the number one investment destination in the world. Indian community can also invest in India. We are having the programs like Start up India or Digital India – we are digitalizing the economy. Huge opportunities are coming up in India in digital world and US is the world leader of digital technology.

Do you have a different set of ideas for New York?

It’s a very vibrant and dynamic city. We have huge presence here. I take it as a challenge because we should live up to the expectations of my government and the community. I am already thinking what differently we can do so our presence here can make a difference. I need your cooperation and help. One thing I want to assure that there has been a change in the consulate. We’ll certainly do what our predecessors have done. But we’ll try to do something more. We had a program called ‘Consulate at Your Doorstep.’ One of the first decisions we took was we’ll revive the program. I’ve asked my colleagues to draw a schedule for next six months. We’ll publish that schedule. And if someone has any grievance, please feel free to come to the consulate. People can connect to us on social media platforms as well.

Some categories right now are being denied passport. Some categories are being denied visas. There are issues which have remained unresolved. Those who sought asylum here are not granted passports. This category needs to be given justice. What is your call?

I am aware of these issues. As a person, I can understand the sentiments and have full sympathy. But we are bound by the policy of Government of India and the policy is decided after a lot of thought processes. We cannot take any decision for which we have to repent later and also it should not prejudice other categories of people who are legitimate residents of this country. It is not only about policy of Government of India but it has an implication on US policy too.

Do you plan to continue with open house to address complaints and grievances?

We will not only continue with the open house; we will try to make it more effective so the complaints and grievances of people needing our services are looked in to expeditiously. We are committed to providing the best consular services. I will urge all to visit the Consulate helpline (helpline@indiacgny.org ) in case of any issues/ information required.

People often complain that they pay agents huge sums for obtaining passport and visa which are originally denied by the Consulate. What is your take on the issue?

This is totally unacceptable. If any such case comes to your notice, please bring it to our notice. Consulate services are free for all Indian nationals. We don’t charge any commission apart from fees that go to Govt of India account. There is no additional surcharge. So, there is no need to go to the agents. If the documents are fine, people will get their visa and passport from the consulate. If not, the agents can’t do anything. We don’t accept any applications through agents.

Some people are afraid of coming to the consulate.

Why? The consulate is an Indian establishment. They should not be afraid. There will be no harm. Please feel free to come to us. We can reach out to these people too through our reach out program.

You are very passionate about having good relations with mainstream American politicians and lawmakers. How do you think to go about it?

I was thinking of multipoint strategies. Some people I will go and meet on my own. Some people I will meet through the community leaders. I have already met some leaders. The community has this ability of connecting the consulate to the American leadership. I will also connect through American organizations and institutions. I will use all resources available. What I would like to convey that we will follow a very inclusive approach. I will deal with everybody and give everybody a chance. That’s the whole idea.

In media interactions, would you like to include mainstream media?

There is no reason that mainstream media should not be involved. We will unfold the strategy to involve them. Not only big media houses but we’ll approach all – even the small ones. We need to engage with everybody. That is our job.

Anything else you want to share?

People should approach us with suggestions. As far as we can help, we will do. We have a new team here; so, give us some time. Periodically we will review our performance. If there is any need for course correction, we’ll do.

(Prof. Indrajit S Saluja / Bidisha Roy)