Construction begins for new Indian embassy building in Bahrain

DUBAI: Construction of a new Indian embassy building in Bahrain has begun with External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid laying the foundation stone for the USD 7.43 million facility.

The new embassy will cover approximately 7,800 square metres and will contain a residence for staff, library, consular hall and an auditorium that can accommodate up to 500 people.

Work on the new embassy in the Seef District in the Bahraini capital Manama got underway yesterday with a ground-breaking ceremony which was also attended by Bahrain's Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.

Indian Embassy information officer Ram Singh said a larger embassy was needed to cater to the large Indian population in Bahrain.

"The new embassy will cost around BD2.8million (USD 7.43 million) to build and will take about 15 months to complete," Singh was quoted as saying by the Gulf Daily News.

"We have been planning a larger presence in Bahrain and with such a large population of over 300,000 Indians, we needed larger premises," he said.