Bhubaneswar, Mar 23: Taking a significant step toward improving visa services in Odisha, a tripartite agreement was signed today between the Home Department, the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), and VFS Global to establish a Visa Application Centre (VAC) at the Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bus Terminal (BSABT).

The agreement was formalized by Soumendra Patra, Additional Secretary (Home); Manas Ranjan Padhi, Secretary, BDA; and Viney John, Associate Vice-President (Administration, South Asia), VFS Global Group.

The proposed centre will be set up at BSABT in Baramunda, with the state government allocating around 3,000 square feet of space. At present, residents of Odisha need to travel to cities like Kolkata, Delhi, or Hyderabad for visa services. The new facility will eliminate the need for such travel, making the process more accessible locally.

The initiative follows approval granted in December by Hon’ble Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi for establishing a Visa Application Centre in the state. Sources indicate that the centre is likely to become operational soon.

In a separate development, BDA also signed an agreement with the Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC) to lease vacant space at the terminal. The agreement was signed by Manas Ranjan Padhi and Mili Samantaray, Administrative Officer of OCAC, in the presence of senior officials.

Under this arrangement, BDA will lease approximately 77,000 square feet across two floors to OCAC, which will further allocate the space to IT companies. The move aims to integrate transport, services, and technology within a single hub.

BDA Vice-Chairman Chanchal Rana stated that BSABT is poised to evolve into a combined transport and business hub, housing IT and ITeS companies alongside the Visa Application Centre. He noted that increased footfall at the terminal is expected to benefit vendors and other stakeholders.

Spread over 11 acres, BSABT is the largest bus terminal in Odisha, managing over 1,500 buses and nearly 20,000 passengers daily across inter-state and intra-state routes, making it a key transit hub in the state.

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