By Ramesh Mathew/Staff Reporter

It is business as usual at several Asian embassies in the country despite the sweltering conditions.
Expatriates thronging these missions for consular services - by braving the July heat – in large numbers have become a common sight these days. This was corroborated by officials in each of the embassies Gulf Times contacted yesterday. They said there was no let-up in the rush for consular services and nothing to suggest a significant change in the number of visitors at the embassies as compared to the pre-summer period.
A decade ago, most embassies wore a largely deserted look during the summer. But the situation is quite different now: as the country sees the arrival of a considerable number of expatriates from different communities, the demand for consular services at these embassies remains high even during summer.
A senior official at the Indian embassy said the mission handled close to 590 consular issues, including job and visa attestations and endorsement of certificates, among others. While the diplomat recalled that the embassy handled more than 720 consular issues on a single day before the advent of the summer, he was quick to clarify that “this number, of course, does not mean that there were as many visitors to the embassy”. “In many cases, people came for more than one consular service,” he said, adding that the figures for today (Tuesday) included attestation of documents received at the Indian Cultural Centre, which is authorised to receive many documents for consular attestations.
Enquiries at the embassies of Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Philippines revealed a similar trend.
A Sri Lankan embassy official said the mission receives 100-150 consular visitors these days. The number was almost the same before the summer started, it was learnt. Besides, the embassy attends to the personal consular and similar requirements of three-five housemaids, according to the official.
At the Nepal embassy, too, things are not that different during the summer, according to one of its officials. He said the mission receives an average of 200 visitors for consular services these days, adding that the number would have been slightly higher before the summer.
It is learnt that a number of expatriates from Qatar are visiting Nepal this summer. As most of those nationalities are eligible for visa on arrival in Kathmandu, they do not have to visit the embassy, said the official. “May be there is a marginal drop in the number of visitors on a daily basis, but the monthly average is more or less the same,” the official added.
Sources in the Philippines embassy said except for a minor drop in consular requests, it is business as usual at the mission. A similar rush can also be found at the Philippines overseas labour office in Bin Omran, it is learnt.
While all other missions start their activities latest by 8am, the Indian embassy begins its daily operations only an hour later.