ANDOVER, MA—About 200 Indians and Indian-Americans from Greater Boston on Sunday welcomed new Consul General of India Mrs. Riva Ganguly Das at Chinmaya Mission in Andover, MA. This was her first official visit outside New York since she was appointed Consul General New York about a couple of months ago.
“She is really a good and humble person and very willing to meet people,” said C. Priyadarshini Srivastava, an area resident who attended the meet and greet event. “She also provided some new information about visa that we did not know.”
Prior to her new asignment, Mrs. Das served as India’s ambassador to Romania, Albania and Maldova. She replaced Ambassador Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, who has been appointed to head the newly formed ‘India Diaspora Division’ in India’s Ministry of External Affairs incorporating the Ministry hitherto known as Ministry of Overseas India Affairs.
The reception and meet and greet event was organized by the Indian-American community and a group of local organizations, including India Association of Greater Boston (IAGB), Global Indians for Bharat Vikas, Chinmaya Mission Boston, Global Indians Business Council, Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America and Moksha Spa & Wellness Center.
Mrs. Das joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1986. She is a Post Graduate in Political Science from Delhi University. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she was a Lecturer at Delhi University, according to Indian embassy website in Romania.
Das first posting was in Spain. Thereafter, she was at Headquarters dealing with External Publicity, Nepal and Passport/Visa work. She was Head of the Cultural Wing of the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. After her return from Dhaka, she took over as Director at the United Nations Economic and Social Affairs Division and participated in environmental negotiations, particularly climate change.
She was the Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of India, The Hague. She was also the Alternate Permanent Representative of India to the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at The Hague. She served as Consul General of India in Shanghai from 2008 to 2012. After her return from China, she headed the Public Diplomacy Division in the Ministry of External Affairs. Before coming to Bucharest, she was in charge of the Latin America & Caribbean Division in the Ministry of External Affairs.
