Israeli ambassador Alon Ushpiz on Tuesday said they will soon start visa services at the Israeli Consulate General office in Bangalore.
The Ambassador told reporters: "This will make visa services more accessible to people in Karnataka and other southern states. We want to make it easier for people to come to Israel,” he said.
India and Israel have been working together in various sectors, including defence, agriculture, horticulture, science and technology. Every year, around 45,000 Indians visit Israel and an equal number of Israelis come here.
Ushpiz said three Centres of Excellence will be inaugurated soon in Kolar,Belgaum and Bagalkot to further collaborative efforts in horticulture and agriculture.
During his two-day visit to the city, the Ambassador visited several institutions, including the Indian Institute of Science (IISc).
“During my visit to the IISc, we discussed research and development initiatives. Israeli universities are very good at taking technology from the laboratory to the field. In fact, a large chunk of their budget comes from their Intellectual Property rights or from marketing their products,” he added.
On whether Israel is offering its expertise in that sector to the IISc, the Ambassador said: “We discussed various issues, but we have not offered anything and there is no road map on any joint initiative”.
On security for Israeli diplomatic missions in India, Ushpiz said, “We feel absolutely safe here in India. In fact, Indian agencies are taking care of our security.”
Consul General of Israel in Bangalore Menahem Kanafi said Israel is working with the state government in agriculture, horticulture and many other sectors. A delegation from Karnataka led by IT/BT Minister S R Patil will visit Israel shortly.