A whopping number of people from the country plan to travel abroad and this is evident from the fact that the number of visa applications submitted at the U.S embassy are much more as compared to the staff they have on rolls. A senior American diplomat at the Embassy confirms that they have asked people to apply for a visa in advance if they plan to travel.
Plan in advance says the U.S. Consulate! Don’t let the travel date approach; decide to apply for a U.S. visa beforehand, say the authorities. This has been recommended because of the severe shortage of staff; say the United States of America consulates in India. 
Earlier one could get the visa in a week’s time but now things have changed and the waiting time on an average has been extended to 4 weeks. Charles E. Luoma-Overstreet, the Chief of the Consular Section, from the U.S. Consulate in Chennai, has confirmed that “The consulate processes about 1,000 to 1,500 visas a day.”
On Friday, Minister-Counselor for Consular Affairs at U.S. Embassy, Joseph M. Pomper, from New Delhi, spoke about the staff shortage and large number of visa applications to the media, stating, “In the last five years, the demand for visas has increased by 80 per cent, while our staffing has remained static. While we have greatly improved efficiency, accommodating visa demand on this scale requires adequate staffing.”
Mr. Pomper had agreed that summer season is busy for them and they are working hard to keep the appointment waiting time for the interview within a period of 4 weeks. He has also said “Those who had received U.S. visas earlier and have no other issues can make use of the interview waiver programme.” Nearly 1.1 million people had applied for visas in India last year and, out of these Chennai has processed almost 2.8 lakh visa applications.
