French officials said the architect for setting up the consulate has been selected. Since September 2008, the consulate office is operating from its trade mission office in the city. The French consulate in the city was closed down in 1998 after a fire at its Park Mansion office. T

he French officials have been scouting for a suitable site for the consulate for the last few years.

The French government is also keen to boost relations between West Bengal and France by reviving Chandernagore, a French settlement in Hooghly district. The French ambassador and Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi will visit Chandernagore on Saturday.

The ambassador also met the state chief secretary on Friday and discussed possibilities of cooperation in areas of higher education, agriculture, culture and other subjects. Bonnafont said France is keen on inter-institutional agreements and increased cooperation at institutes like IITs and IIMs. “The chief secretary said what the chief minister told me two months ago that they want to develop agriculture and agro business since we are already number one in Europe in terms of food processing and agro business,” said Bonnafont. The ambassador also pointed that a special trade mission on agriculture from France will visit the country and Bengal this year.